Your Life in Someone Else's Eyes
by edgeofmyemotions
Summary: When Sasha made the resolve to object at a wedding she couldn't bear to see through, she made sure she was prepared for anything. Anything. Except maybe bursting in on the wrong church. And objecting at the wrong wedding. And suddenly being invited to coffee by the groom. Oh well. Rated for characters' unfiltered mouths and my own paranoia. Cover art originally by shounenkings.
1. Prologue

A/N: It's been a year and five months since I posted something here. I've been writing some stuff here and there, but I never really got around posting it. But now, with renewed vigor, I finally got my crap together and started to write and post again! You can blame it on the anime and manga I've been overloading myself with lately XD and also on this particular pairing. It's all fun and games until you start shipping it. Next thing you know it's taking over your life. Oh well.

* * *

PROLOGUE

Anxious brown eyes darted nervously around the cab their owner was situated in. High-heel clad feet tapped impatiently on its carpeted floor.

"Can't you go any faster?" her voice spoke up.

"About that Miss…I'm afraid I can't do that." The driver's rough voice answered, eyes still on the road. "Traffic's pretty heavy around this time so it might take a while before we reach the place."

The girl did nothing but sigh nervously in return.

He hit the brake at a red light and snuck a glance at his passenger. "You look rather nice today. You said you were going to a church…you attending a wedding?"

The girl blushed and fiddled with a strand of brown hair on her shoulder before looking away.

"Yeah something like that. Oh wait we're here. Here's your pay. Keep the change. Thanks so much!" she sprinted out the cab without another word, a small amount of money carelessly tossed on the seat.

"Wait hold on! Miss the- never mind…" he sighed as he watched the girl barge her way through the church's door.

"Oh well. I should probably just stay here until she realizes she's at the wrong church."

"We are all gathered here today to commemorate the union of two people…"

Jean chose to drone out the words coming out of the reverend's mouth. _The sooner we get this over with the better._

Minutes ticked on, the suit he had on feeling more uncomfortable by the second, his patience running thinner and thinner.

"Should anyone object to this union, speak now or forever hold your peace."

A small part deep inside him hoped that someone will intervene.

.

.

.

_Someone…_

.

.

.

_Anyone…_

.

.

.

_Please…_

.

.

.

"I OBJECT!"

_Oh thank God…_

.

.

.

_Wait._

.

.

.

_Who the hell is that?_

* * *

"I OBJECT!"

The whole placed turned silent as Sasha's outburst resonated the air. They gave curious looks at the girl panting near the entrance. Just who was that? Was she a bitter ex-girlfriend out for revenge? Or was she a friend of the bride who was inexplicably in love with the groom? Maybe even a secret affair of the groom? The last thing on their minds was some random girl who sabotaged the wrong wedding.

The couple at the altar was stunned to say the least, mere moments away before 'sealing the deal'. The priest was equally shocked, eyes widening with almost comical astonishment.

And what of the girl at the entrance you ask? It took her a full minute to realize just what the hell she's gotten herself into.

Sasha surveyed her surroundings. She didn't know any of these people. But then again…the bride was short with blonde hair and blue eyes. And the groom was fairly tall himself like Berthold…maybe he just dyed his hair beige before the wedding?

Choosing to push her luck and deliver the final blow to what was left of her pride she spoke in a small voice.

"This doesn't happen to be the Annie Leonhart – Berthold Hoover Wedding right?"

The guests merely shook their heads in condolence. The sound of hands face-palming resounded. The groom pointed to the wall behind him with his thumb. There, in all its unbound glory, was the testament to Sasha's own stupidity, written in big, fancy lettering.

_Jean &amp; Krista_

.

.

.

"Oh shit."

A/N: That was crappy…oh well I'll make sure to update soon. But between my general laziness, paranoia, perfectionism, and a crap-ton of other excuses I'm pulling out of my ass, I'm not sure as to when soon is. Next week? Next month? And this prologue wasn't beta read by the way. So forgive any grammar mistakes you happen to have come across…*bows on the floor with no intention of getting back up*

Love it? Hate it? Please drop a review if you have the time (^o^)V

Till next time

edgeofmyemotions


	2. Okay

Chapter 1: Okay

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Seriously. If I did I would've revealed Hanji's true gender by now. And made all of my ships canon. But alas, I do not own the masterpiece of Hajime Isayama. Neither do I own any of the songs I use at the beginning of my chapters.

* * *

_I like your smile_

_But even introductions need to last a while_

-Okay, Backhouse Mike

* * *

Sasha was in a pickle.

(But then again she's never exactly been very fond of that particular vegetable so allow me to rephrase that.)

Sasha was in a potato.

And this potato was not one she could drop as if it was scalding, nor was it one she could gulp down as if it was nothing. No, this very potato was thrown at her face, leaving her with very little time to react. Figuratively speaking of course. Literally speaking, she would've been knocked unconscious by now.

She would've preferred the latter.

She was honestly prepared for anything. A catfight with the bride? Sure! Disturbingly buffed up men called to take her away? Go ahead! Hell she was even prepared for a _sixty-foot humanoid giant_ to suddenly pop right in and kick a hole in the church wall and eat everyone.

But _thi_s?

Walking in the wrong church and intruding the wrong wedding?

This is just dumb. No, dumb would be an understatement. This could've been downright hilarious had it been someone else. But apparently it hadn't. So for now she'll just stick with a different adjective to use for this particular situation. _Moronic? Stupid? Idiotic?_

She shot another glance at the guests.

_Yep. That seems right._

Being beaten up by a potato seemed like _such_ a good idea right now.

Sasha coughed and gained her composure. She attempted putting on the most dignified face she could muster. It only came out as a grimace. She bit her lip.

"I see. Carry on."

She turned around, practically _feeling _hundreds of eyes piercing holes on her back. Had they stared more intensely, she would've burst into flames right then and there. Her hands grasped the ivory handles of the door. She walked out, closed it behind her and shuffled a good distance away from the church.

She looked up to the heavens, closed her eyes, and took a deep breath…

And let out a scream that could shatter glass and topple brick walls.

"Oi."

She whipped her neck at the unfamiliar voice.

"You're making way too much noise there. People are getting frightened." He said, his eyes sullen and uninterested.

_This guy…why does he seem so familiar?_

_Hold on..._

.

.

.

_Ample height._

.

.

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_Hazel eyes._

.

.

.

_Beige hair._

Sasha's brown eyes nearly popped out of her head.

_This is the groom! The hell is he doing here?_

"You were that girl from earlier weren't you?"

_Oh shit I've been caught! Need to escape. Need to escape. I NEED TO ESCAPE._

"Oi, did you even hear me?"

"Oh…Yes. That was me. Sorry about that." She grimaced uncomfortably.

An awkward silence followed after. _What am I still doing here?_

"What was his name again?"

The spur of his words triggered a mixed amount of emotions from the girl. Mainly confusion.

"Excuse me? What are you talking about?"

"If you weren't intending to sabotage my wedding, you seemed hellbent to break up someone else's. Whose?"

She shifted uncomfortably in her posture. This time she wasn't blaming it on the heels she was wearing.

"It doesn't really matter now does it? And aren't you supposed to be getting married or something?" she asked, brows knit together as she side glanced him.

"The wedding was postponed."

"What." Her eyes nearly bulged out her head the second time that day.

"My mother-in-law -well supposed to be mother-in-law anyways- postponed it. Something about this being a bad omen for our wedding life or whatever. She's always been over that superstitious shit. It's been moved to three months from now." He met her stunned gaze with a smirk.

Sasha was now speechless. To whomever this guy was, Jean, if she recalled, she may or may not have just ruined everything for him. '_Why the hell is he smirking? I just wrecked his entire wedding…'_

"Don't worry about it. I forgive you."

_'Did he just read my mind?'_

"No you're talking out loud."

"Oh."

"You're weird you know that?" he chuckled.

She shrugged. "I suppose."

"You still haven't answered my question though."

She didn't meet his gaze and stayed silent.

"Wanna talk about it over coffee?"

_The heck is this guy getting at?_

"Uhh sure. When?"

"Right now."

"Wait what?"

He didn't respond, and instead took her by the wrist and led her to the nearest café. She didn't bother resisting and opted to stare at his back. _He's still in his suit_, she mused. To the random passerby, they would've looked like a couple going to prom. Except that it wasn't prom season, they were already finished with college, and the two hardly knew each other. Oh well.

They traveled in awkward silence. It was Jean however who broke it.

"Still haven't gotten your name though." He sneaked a glance at the girl behind him.

"It's Sasha. Sasha Braus."

* * *

Krista winced as she took out the pins holding up her hair. Messy waves of blonde cascaded on her back as she sighed and set the pins on her vanity. They were deadly close to piercing holes through her skull. She could finally save her brain from being _impaled_.

Another perk of having that girl burst into her wedding.

She might have to put up with her mother's rambling for a while, but that was a small price to pay to have this arrangement put off for another three months.

She made it a mental note to find that girl and thank her.

No longer was Krista in her wedding dress, as she had changed into a sundress that went just above her knees and a light sweater, both of which will never be as constricting as that gown. _Whose idea was it to have me wear a corset anyways? Oh right. Mother dearest._

She grumbled lightly.

Her mother had taken the time to apologize profusely to all the guests, so she had most of the afternoon to herself.

_Thank heavens_, she grinned.

_I should probably get something to eat. I'm starved._

She made her way out her house in no time, opting go on foot the full six blocks after finally freeing her feet from the torture device they dubbed stilettos. Heels never really benefited her anyways. _Except maybe add to my height. Or in my case, the apparent lack thereof._

With another sigh she entered the cafe, the smell of coasting coffee beans filling her nostrils. The sound of cash registers and light chatter resonate the air. She took her place on the line closest to her and patiently waited for her turn.

She ordered her fill, paid the bill and walked out, Caramel Macchiato in hand, still deep in thought.

Even if it's been moved three months later, that doesn't mean she's not going to be forced to marry someone she barely knew. Her parents broke the news to her just a few months ago, and before she could even respond they set it final and dragged her along to a seamstress for a dress fitting. When she told her best friend Ymir about it over the phone a few days later, the taller girl nearly blasted her ear off with non-stop questions as to whom and why. When she didn't respond Ymir practically _rammed her car at their front gate_ while blasting her car horn. _In the middle of the night_. Her mother threatened to sue her for property damage. The younger woman threatened to sue back for violating human freedom. Whatever that meant. Their strife was finally ceased when Krista got in between them. After which she invited the taller girl to be her Maid of Honor, an offer which both parties scowled at, but nonetheless agreed to. Though the two women were still in a war zone, their hostility dropped when the smaller girl was around. Krista would just sigh and try to ignore the tension obviously boiling over between the two. But she had to admit, it was funny how her best friend showed the same contempt and frustration she never could. She'd have to thank her for that at some point.

In a flurry of blonde and brown she collided into something hard, spilling her drink on the pavement.

"Ouch."

It was when she looked up that she realized what she bumped into wasn't something, but some_one_ (or more accurately, someone's _chest_). Baby blue eyes met midnight as she took a closer look at who she bumped into_. Tied back blonde hair. Button-up shirt. Book under his arm. _

"I'm so sorry! Are you hurt?" she asked, dainty hand grasping his arm.

"Not at all. My coffee's pretty much wasted now though." He replied sheepishly.

It took her a second glance to the pavement that she realized that there were _two_ empty cups there. Not one.

"Oh dear. Let me make it up to you. It was me who didn't look where I was going. Please?" she insisted, eyes nearly watering at the request. By some mysterious force of nature and physics the sun chose to shine more brightly at that exact moment, its rays reflecting into her hair and giving her a heavenly aura.

_'She's a goddess...'_ the boy thought.

"It's weird, I get called that often." She giggled.

"Did I say that aloud? I mean- sure. Yeah. Coffee sounds- coffee does seem nice." He stuttered, flushing and not meeting her gaze.

"I believe I didn't get your name yet Miss." Armin caught up with her as she made her way back to the café.

"It's Krista." She smiled and nodded gratefully as he opened the door for her.

"Nice to meet ya. I'm Armin."

* * *

It took Sasha 10 minutes to finally give her answer. But before she did she took the time to pick at the baked potato she ordered along with her drink. Jean merely stared at her patiently. She took a deep breath.

"His name was Berthold Hoover. We first met in High School. We were…good friends. He was closer to a guy named Reiner though. Anyways, he was a nice guy_. Really_ nice. He offered me some of his lunch a couple times, gave me all of it on other occasions. He didn't tell the teachers that I secretly hid food during classes, didn't care that I get hungry way more often than what was considered 'normal'…it turns out I ended up falling for him in Senior Year…it just…happened. Do you know what I mean?"

Jean nodded, silently telling her to go on.

"And…well, turns out he liked this other girl named Annie when we were in college. Annie wasn't exactly…nice. And don't get the wrong idea; she wasn't a stuck-up bitch either. She was just…_Annie_. She was quiet. She didn't mingle much with the others. I thought I caught Bert staring at her a couple of times. Thought it was all just in my head so I shook it off. Next thing I knew he came up to me asking for advice on how to ask her out. I was this close to telling him how I really felt." She brought her hand up and curled it into a fist, leaving out her thumb and forefinger. They were merely millimeters apart. She dropped her hand with a sigh.

"But I didn't. I blew my chance. I thought that maybe they wouldn't last, but I was wrong. They ended up going steady for years. Then I found out he was planning to propose to her. I was the first person he told." She chuckled bitterly. "I figured that my last chance would be today, at their wedding. But as you can tell," she gestured to herself. "I blew that chance as well." She slouched into her chair and finished her spud in one gulp.

He nodded again. "Sorry to hear that." She watched as he took a sip from his coffee. "Hey Jean?"

He hummed in response.

"I answered your questions. Mind answering mine?"

He shrugged. "Sure why not."

Sasha took a deep breath.

"I may or may not have just ransacked your wedding and embarrassed myself in front of hundreds of people. Yet you're acting so nice to me; treating me to coffee and listening to me rant about my non-existent love life. Why is that?"

"Believe it or not I never wanted to get married. You actually saved me back there."

Her brows furrowed the second time that day. "Huh? Then why did you..?" she trailed off, leaving him to fill in the blanks.

He sighed. "The whole 'wedding'," he air-quoted. "It was all an arrangement. Purely political."

Sasha cocked her head to side, clearly more confused than she initially was.

"My parent's idea. Thought it would help the economic _abortion_ they call the family business." He supplied.

"Ah." She nodded.

"Mom came up to me once a couple months back saying that I should consider getting married to a 'family friend'. Found out that this so-called family friend turned out to be the daughter of one of our investors. Anyways, I told her I'll think about it. Truth be told I didn't want to be in a relationship with anyone at the time. Much less get married. Then three weeks ago they told me. Turns out I was."

"So they planned and thrust you into marriage without your consent?" Sasha quipped.

"No shit Sherlock." He deadpanned.

Despite the blunt way he said it, and the indirect insult put into his words, the brunette chuckled. "Why not give it a chance though? She seemed like a nice girl. Krista right?"

He nodded. "Yeah she was. She's really nice, even dubbed a goddess other times. It's just that I wasn't in the mood to get married, ya know? I'm aware that twenty-four isn't too young to get married, but I wanted to wait for the right time. Not be dragged into it like dogs being forced to fuck each other for offspring." His eyes were dead serious.

Sasha only nodded, taking in the fact that they were nearly the same age. "I see. I was under the impression that you were gay or something."

He shot her a glare. She raised her hands up in surrender. "I kid, I kid. Lighten up." She exhaled and dropped her hands. "Sorry though."

"For what exactly?" Jean dropped the glare and merely quirked an eyebrow at the dejected look on her face. _She looks better smiling_, he mused.

"For making you feel obliged to treat me to coffee. Then suddenly questioning your sexuality." She looked away sheepishly.

"Nah don't worry about it. You just bailed me out of the worst day of the rest of my life. Now that it's still _my_ life. This is the least I could do for you." He reached for her hand across the table and held in his own. She met his gaze at the sudden contact. He was smiling at her.

Her heart skipped a beat as she smiled back.

* * *

She had bumped into him on the street just awhile ago and offered to replace his spilled drink. Suddenly it went from there to taking a little place by the window to comments about the weather to a game of 20 questions to suddenly being in a full-on debate on a topic they had no idea the other knew so extensively about. At some point Krista wondered if they really just met, but shrugged it off and tuned back in on the conversation at hand. She was enjoying this.

"…and that's why I believe that Lelouch is alive." Armin concluded, pleased with his reasoning.

"You've got it all wrong Armin! You're forgetting that he was _stabbed in the chest_. There's no way he could've-"

"C.C. survived _a shot in the head_. And another one in the chest. He's immortal now just like her. Who else could she have been talking to on that cart in the last episode?"

"He didn't even respond back. She could've just been talking to him telepathically like what she did with Marianne."

"That may be. And that also depends on which version you watched. Subbed or dubbed?"

"Both. What does that have to do with anything?"

"You forgot the guy smirking in the cart."

"That could've been someone else." Krista tried to argue, she knew full well she had lost that round.

"Wanna bet on it?" he added cheekily.

"I hardly know you Armin. You could be an ax murderer." She jokingly narrowed her eyes at him.

He laughed, getting the reference. "Yeah maybe. There is the possibility. For the record I never really pegged you to be into this kind of stuff. And I believe it's your turn Krista."

Said girl snuck a glance at her watch before going her turn. 4:57. Her mother was going to _kill_ her. Had she really been out that long? She turned back to her companion with an apologetic look. "Armin…I'm sorry but…I have to go now."

His smile dropped. "Oh. I see."

She slowly got up from her chair. "It was nice talking to you though." She smiled brightly at him before saying her goodbye and making her way to the exit. She walked out, looking up at the orange sky that set fire to the clouds in the horizon. Meeting Armin by chance was…nice. It was a refreshing break. A break she very much needed. She wasn't nearly two blocks away from the door when a voice called to her.

"Krista wait!"

She stopped in her tracks and turned to see Armin running towards her, arms waving frantically. _Guess he's not so athletic_, she mused.

He finally caught up to her, panting heavily and resting his hands on his knees.

"You…forgot…this…" the taller blonde said between pants. He extended his hand to the girl in front of him. In it was a wrinkled up handkerchief.

"So you chased me out the door just to give back my handkerchief…?" she took the scrap of fabric in his hand with a questioning but amused look.

"Yep." He straightened up and walked away. "I'll be going now. Bye." He offered a backhanded wave and set off.

Krista didn't realize she was smiling after him until he was out of sight. With a small laugh she went back to the direction she intended to go and reached for her purse. It was when she looked at its contents that she realized that her hankie was still inside. She stopped in her tracks.

_Then whose is this? _

Curious, she unfolded the bandanna in her hand and peered at the neat scrawl hastily written on it.

_555-1103_

_Armin Arlert_

She flushed multiple shades of red before shoving the scrap of cloth in her bag and quickening her pace back home.

_Darn him. Sneaky little jerk._

But no amount of cursing and running could stop the blush that remained on her cheeks, or the smile that started to form on her lips.

* * *

"It's raining."

Sasha looked up at the sky, cerulean long been replaced with inky black and dotted with stars, droplets drizzling on the pavement making it look like wrought silver. The breeze nipped at her nose and skin with a chill that sent her shivering. The café had already closed, and they had no choice but to vacate the vicinity. What Sasha didn't understand was how she lost track of so much time while with this guy she had _just met_. Jean didn't seem so bothered by it though.

"You don't say?"

She huffed in annoyance and shot him a look. "I didn't even bring an umbrella. Ugh..." she wrapped her arms around herself, hoping to get warm.

She heard the rustling of fabric as she turned her attention back to the sky.

"Here."

She turned to see his arm extended to her, jacket in hand.

"I can't accept that. You'll catch a cold."

"_You_ will if you don't take it. It's fine. My shirt's long sleeved anyways."

She opened her mouth to protest, but was cut off when he went behind her and draped the jacket over her bare shoulders. _It is kinda warm… _

She unconsciously pulled it closer over her frame after putting her arms through the sleeves. "I'm sorry you had to do this."

He took hold of her arm.

"Sasha for crying out loud stop apologizing. I said it was fine. Now stop saying sorry. We're cool." He released his grip and sighed. The next she knew he looked her back in the eyes and grinned. "Okay?"

She couldn't stop herself from smiling back.

"Okay."

* * *

A/N 1: I'll be honest. I freaked out when I first saw two followers six hours after I posted the prologue. Like seriously. Thanks so much! *virtually hugs* Anyways, I'll try my best to have the second chapter up as soon as I can, But with school coming up in two weeks I might be held back a bit. No matter! I swear on Sasha's love for potatoes I will finish this story!

A/N 2: Points to anyone who can guess the origin behind the last four digits in Armin's number

A/N 3: Random Code Geass reference, I know.

A/N 4: Post a review if you have the time (^o^)V

Till next time my lovelies!

edgeofmyemotions


	3. Enchanted

Chapter 2: Enchanted

Disclaimer: Do I have to? *groans* I don't own anything but my crappy story. Enough said.

* * *

_I'll spend forever wondering if you knew_

_I was enchanted to meet you too_

-Enchanted, Owl City

* * *

"-and then he just invited me to coffee afterwards just like that! It was so –so weird! Who does that? Then he just grabbed my wrist and dragged me to the nearest café." Sasha said as she set her phone on loudspeaker on her nightstand and crawled under the covers. She had arrived just a little while ago, and had cozied up in her pajamas.

,"Then he goes around asking me about Berthold, then telling me that it was all an arranged marriage. Purely political." She smiled as she recalled the exact same words he told her just a few hours ago. "Told me I saved him from it and that it's been moved three months later."

"_Wow that's one to tell the kids._" Connie said at the other end of the line. "'_Kids the day I met your mother she bailed me out of an arranged marriage and I asked her out.'_" He tried to say in a smooth baritone. Emphasis on the word 'try'.

Sasha snorted. "No Connie, we're not dating. I hardly know the guy." She snorted again. "And dude, you can't pull off Ted Mosby impressions. Don't bother."

"Hey that was the best one yet! And I don't see you trying. "

"I can't sound like Ted either Con. I'm not a man."

"You and I know for damn sure that you're manlier than most men."

She let out something that's sounded like a cross between a scoff and laugh, head shaking at the truth of her best friend's words. Most men can't handle eating twice their own body weight worth of food every week. But Sasha can and still had room for more. Before she knew it she was already laughing out loud, Connie following suit at the other end.

"To be honest Sash, I'm really glad to see you so calm about what happened. I pretty much expected you to be a mess when you called." Sasha abruptly stopped laughing and hoped that he didn't notice.

"Hell, I even prepared for the worst and loaded up on steamed potatoes and chocolate when I got home after the reception in case you needed any comfort food. But by the looks of things, I guess you don't."

A smile tugged at the corners of her lips at the prospect of her friend's thoughtfulness.

"Yeah I guess so." She sighed lightly, and then smirked. "But that doesn't mean I'm not taking you up on the potatoes. I'll pick them up tomorrow? Lunch time? That okay?"

"Sure go ahead."

"Yay!" she yawned.

He let out a chuckle. "You sleepy already Sash?"

"Yeah. It's been a hell of a day as you can tell. I'll see ya tomorrow Con. Night."

"Night Sasha."

She reached over and hit end call on her phone. With a sigh she lied back down on the covers and thought back to the events that happened earlier that day.

The level of confusion she felt hit a solid ten when she tried (and utterly failed) to understand how and why she spilled the entirety of her pathetic excuse of a love life to someone who wasn't Connie or Mikasa (both of which swore to take it to the grave). Then it suddenly went off the charts when she realized that she spilled all of that to a _complete stranger_ she met in the _weirdest way possible_. Soon her brain went on overdrive as her confusion went over nine thousand when it occurred to her that she had just spent her _entire afternoon_ with said stranger, accepted his jacket, and blushed all the way home as they parted ways, said jacket hanging carefully on her closet door. Truth be told Jean wasn't the first guy to do something so gentlemanly for her. There had been Berthold, Connie, hell, even _Eren_ (once she noted that Mikasa wasn't on a murderous intent). But with Jean, it was just different. It wasn't done in a way that made her fall for him like how Berthold had done it, nor was it done out of pure friendship. It was done the same way Jean spoke, annoyingly straightforward yet had the smallest hints of pure kindness. They hardly knew each other yet it felt so…_right_.

She rolled and tried to lie to her left side, trying her best to get some rest. She doesn't see that happening anytime soon, not when Connie's words were starting to sink in. Why wasn't she a sobbing, overly emotional mess at the moment? She should be a sniffling little ball of tears right now, surrounded by used up tissues and crumpled up chocolate wrappers, suffocating the life out of an innocent teddy bear while watching crappy romance films like a hormonal teenager. But she wasn't. Her eyes were completely dry, she hadn't opened a box of tissues to use up and she wasn't drowning out pathetic professions of love from a TV screen. She was perfectly fine and she didn't understand why. It was only after several rounds of tossing and turning that she did.

But as soon as everything started to fall into place, she had already drifted off to sleep, a smile etched on her face.

* * *

Jean sighed as he entered his apartment, feeling the exhaustion from today's events seep in along with the rain that he waded through. His parents have been calling him non-stop ever since he ran off with Sasha behind their backs, his phone threatening to tear a hole in his pants with the constant vibrating. He'd chosen to ignore the unpleasant feeling in his pocket and shut off his phone when Sasha excused herself to use the restroom. Instead of being greeted by the darkness he left his apartment in, he met his parents' stern where-have-you-been-young-man looks. Had it been his younger self, he would've smiled sheepishly before bowing his head in shame as he listened to their scolding. But he wasn't.

"How the hell did you get into my apartment?"

His father narrowed his eyes at him.

"Where the hell have you been?"

"Where is your suit jacket?" his parents asked at once.

Jean opted to ignore his father's inquiry and turned to his mother. _Come on Jean, think. You can't say you gave it to the girl who objected at the wrong wedding._

"It was getting hot while I was out so I left in on a park bench. Some guy stole it while I wasn't looking."

His mother nodded and bought the alibi (thank heavens) and he turned to his father. Again began a sermon on a topic that he could never really give two shits about (*cough* taking over the family business *cough*). Years of experience allowed him to drown out his father's voice without looking uninterested or disrespectful. With a final nod his father stood from his couch and made his way to the door, his mother following suit.

"Jean."

"Yes?"

"I'm giving you these three months to make your choice." The older man led his wife out the door first before shutting it behind him.

_Not even a goodbye. Tch._

With another sigh he kicked off his dress shoes and entered his bedroom, taking his phone out of his pocket as he did so. He set it on his nightstand as it turned on, glad that he didn't have to worry about them calling again.

_They make it look like I was a seventeen year old who snuck out with a girl and missed his curfew._

He froze when he realized that technically he did.

_Sneaking out to see a girl than taking her out on a date. Yep it seemed like I was seventeen again._

_Wait._

Date? Was it even considered as a date?

_I did pick up the bill._

He winced upon remembering the large dent the girl left in his wallet. _What kind of girl can finish 5 plates of baked potatoes anyways? _

But then again what kind of girl would object at a wedding only to realize she went in the wrong church?

He smiled fondly at the memory of seeing her through at the door, her eyes full of determination then suddenly widening with shock and mortification in the next second. It would be an understatement to say she wasn't like other girls. Not every girl can save him from the oblivion his parents dubbed the family business.

For the past months it's been the same thing over and over again; _learn your responsibilities Jean, it's your duty as the sole heir to do this Jean, you have to make the choice Jean _yadda, yadda, yadda…what was the point of making him take over an unstable business anyways? He groaned internally.

Ever since they got conned some time a couple years back they've been flying low. But his father kept on, pulling at odds and ends, barely making ends meet. Between his chosen course and his true interests Jean managed on his own, moving out the second he got his diploma and going back and forth between jobs. His parents didn't really seem to care. But now they seemed to care enough to get him hitched with an investor's daughter for monetary support. Was it frustrating for him? Yes. Did he make any move to disagree? Of course he did. But did he actually succeed in convincing them? Nope not at all.

A ring broke him from his thoughts. He peered at the Caller ID before hitting Accept.

"Eren? That you?"

"_Hey Horse-face._" Yep it was definitely him. "_How was the wedding?_"

Eren hadn't been able to attend since he had a seminar out of town. Fortunately enough for him, Jean hadn't minded at all. This wedding wasn't something he wanted to attend either.

Jean smiled. "On a three month hiatus."

"_That's good to hear- wait what? Seriously? That's even better! What happened?_"

"Some chick burst through the door and objected. She made it to the wrong wedding. Future monster-in-law wanted to move thinking it was a bad omen or whatever."

"_Damn. That's the luckiest break you ever got. What about that girl? She okay? Did your parents send out a hitman or whatever after her so it won't happen again?_"

Jean rolled his eyes. "No Eren, my dad isn't that sadistic." He chuckled. "Most of the time anyways. She's fine though. Talked to her a bit afterwards. Told her it was all cool." he said, choosing to leave out treating her to coffee.

"_That's great._" Jean could sense that he nodded at the other end. "_Anyways Horse-face,_"

Jean cringed at the high school nickname.

"_The reason why I called is that there's been an opening here at work. I thought you'd want to be with your own kind for a while._"

* * *

"Armin? ARMIN!"

Eren's voice snapped the blonde out of his thoughts.

"Huh? What?"

The brunette shook his head. "Something's obviously bothering you."

"No, it's nothing." Armin waved his hand as if trying dismissing the thought.

"You don't stare of into space for an hour for nothing." Mikasa said. To Eren, it sounded like a deadpan. To Armin, it felt like a bull's eye. He shifted uncomfortably on the couch.

Noticing how uneasy he was Mikasa asked in a kinder voice. "What is it Armin?" she looked back down at the shirt she was folding, but still obviously waiting for his reply.

Armin exhaled heavily. He knew he would have to tell them at some point.

"I met a girl today."

Mikasa's hand froze halfway through placing the shirt in her suitcase and she immediately looked back up, moonstone eyes showing the slightest glints of- wait was that surprise? _Mikasa Ackerman? Surprised?_

"So what? You meet a lot of girls at work. Geez Armin you didn't have to make such a big deal out of it." Eren stated so innocently.

Armin could've sworn that Mikasa was going to face-palm then and there. Instead she shoved the last articles of clothing in her case and zipped it shut. He sighed before turning to the brunette.

"I also gave her my number."

That was when green eyes widened and strong hands gripped onto lanky shoulders.

"Who are you and what've you done to Armin Arlert?!" Eren asked hysterically, shaking the blonde back and forth. The Armin stared back at him completely terrified.

"Answer me damn you! Where did you keep him?!"

"That's enough Eren." Mikasa didn't bother getting up from her chair.

"Eren, you're literally about to dislocate my scapula if you don't let me go!"

His hands flew off him in an instant. "Oh good it really is you."

Armin grabbed his left shoulder with his right hand and rolled the joints, hoping to regain feeling back into it.

Eren had already gone back to his spot on the couch and continued filling the remainder of his bag with toiletries.

Armin stood up and grabbed a small suitcase he had placed behind the couch and started filling it with some comic books. He had already finished packing the essentials earlier that day and opted to pack the things he'd need to pass the time at work.

"How'd ya meet her Armin?" Eren inquired, trying his hardest to zip up his overstuffed bag.

"I bumped into her while I went out to get some coffee today."

"Wow. Seems really random." The brunette stood up and proceeded to carry his bag to the front door.

"She was really nice though. And pretty. I bet she already has a boyfriend." Armin sighed before sneaking another glance at his phone.

"I hardly doubt it Armin." Mikasa spoke up. She smiled at him slightly. Eren plopped down beside her and nodded. "Yep she's got a point. She would've told you if she did. Damn it my best friend is getting some before I could. I'm so jealous." He then pretended to wipe tears from his eyes to emphasize his point.

Armin rolled his eyes and grinned. "Nah you already beat me to it." He glanced at Mikasa. Her poker face remained intact.

"Huh?"

The blonde sighed in defeat and shoved a novel into his suitcase. "Nothing."

Silence passed for a few brief moments. But when Armin's phone started ringing, neither Eren nor Mikasa bothered to ask who it was from. The smile on his face as he texted back was the only answer they needed.

* * *

Ymir rolled her eyes and cursed under her breath.

"Krista I swear you've been pacing back and forth for the past hour and its driving me insane. Just call him already."

The smaller girl stopped in her tracks and clutched the phone closer to her chest, her watery gaze meeting an annoyed one.

"But what if-"

"Oh please like hell he'd give you the wrong number. You're too cute to be played with like that. And that guy seems like a _way_ better option compared to that moron you're being forcibly hitched to. Now dial in his number before I do it myself."

Krista let out a shaky breath. "I'll just text him."

"Ugh _fine_. I'll leave that to you. Anyways, it's getting late and I should go now before your mother makes me." She patted the smaller girl's head and made her way to the door.

Once the freckled girl was out the door she collapsed into a heap on her bed and thought of what to send to him.

Shaky fingers flew over her phone as she typed it out.

_Hi Armin :) It's Krista. I just want to let you know that it was nice meeting you. I hope we get to see each other again. Goodnight! :)_

She hit send with a satisfied sigh. The reply came half a minute later.

_Hey Krista. And yes, I was enchanted to meet you as well. Sweet dreams :)_

His choice of words wasn't what she was used to (he must've gotten that from all the books he reads) but her heart still flutters at the reply. She set her phone on her nightstand and lied on her back, her heart still beating frantically. She drifted off to sleep, hoping and praying it won't be the last time that it does.

* * *

"Are ya finished packing Sash?" Connie asked the girl beside him as he paid most of his attention to the TV screen. Sasha arrived as planned and they were slumped in his living room, a full on death match coming under way in their virtual forms.

The brunette held the controller in her right hand when her buzz-cut friend hit pause, took a bite of a baked potato with her left and nodded. She swallowed and turned to her friend. "My bags are already set out on my front door. You?"

"Yeah I'm all set. We leave tomorrow after lunch right?"

"Yep. I don't see why we have to leave so early though. We could leave like what, an hour or two later and we'd still make it before five in the afternoon or something."

"You were the one who wanted to have a couple of drills with the target boards before everyone else gets there."

"Ugh. _Fine._"

"Speaking of work, what happened to Mike anyways?"

"Not really sure. Some prank Eren pulled again?"

"Probably."

Sasha turned back to the screen about the same time Connie hit start again.

Silence passed by, both still absorbed with kicking each other's virtual asses.

"So how are things with you and Jean?"

"For the last time Connie we are not dating. I don't even have his number for fuck's sake."

"Fair enough. But Sash," He grunted in effort from playing before continuing. "You seem a lot happier now than before you met him. I don't know what it is about this guy but he really seemed to have this effect on you."

Sasha pursed her lips for a slight moment. "Maybe."

The truth was Jean _did_. It had all started at that small moment of physical contact when he reached for her hand across the table. He stuttered and looked away awkwardly after realizing what he was doing and let go. All warmth that rushed through her disappeared. The next thing she knew they spent the entire afternoon together, chatting up on the weather and people watching. They noted customers who they deemed to be out of the ordinary like that blonde whose gender they profusely debated upon, or that elderly man who yelled his order at the barista with eyes that made him look like he was on some sort of narcotic. They had stayed until the café closed. It all just ended up being so…pleasant. She hadn't felt that way in a while. _Especially after Berthold told me about his proposal plan._

Sasha half-heartedly pushed a few buttons for a combo and sent Connie's life bar down to zero.

"Dammit Sasha!"

Laughter bubbled from her lips. "We're taking the 1:45 train with Eren and the others right? Then the 2:30 bus?"

"Yep."

"Okay."

Silence followed, neither making a move or a sound.

"Round 2?"

"You're on."

* * *

The Sina Country Club was a spacious villa that took up most of the area down south of the state, neighboring most of the rural area. It would take a good three hours to get there from the city so it required its employees to live in the lodging behind the main building. Sasha had been working there for 2 years, give or take a few months, and had always been enjoying the fresh air. It was one of the many things you scarcely find in the city.

With a smile she hopped off the bus, quiver and bow slung carefully on her shoulder. She exhaled in satisfaction. It's so good to be back.

The Club closes during the winter to ensure the wellbeing of the horses and of the employees and also for the holidays. The rest of the year requires the employee's perfect attendance, especially in the summer when most of their members tend to visit. Amidst the breeze that lightly shook the trees, she heard grunts of effort come from the bus.

"Sasha are you just gonna stand there or are you helping me out?" Connie asked rather annoyed, multiple bags crowded at his feet.

She playfully stuck her tongue out at him and laughed. "Yeah, yeah, I'm on it. Let me have my moment Con."

"Your moment is taking too long and I don't want to be the one to carry your food bag."

"Fine. Meanie."

Sasha shuffled over to where Connie was and lugged her bags with minimum effort. "Where's Mikasa?" She asked as they made their way to the front entrance. "I gave her the key to our room while we were still in the bus."

"She already went ahead with Eren and Armin while you were busy having your moment."

She huffed in annoyance as they reached the glass door. But before Sasha could shuffle her bags to one hand to open it with the other, someone had already opened it for her. She grinned when she saw who it was.

"Hanji! It's so good to see you!" the taller woman grinned back and gave the girl a warm one-armed hug.

"Good to see you too, kiddo." She pulled away to give Connie the same.

"So how are Sawney and Bean?" Sasha asked, referring to Hani's pet centipedes. Connie winced uncomfortably at the thought of them. But Sasha held a strange interest toward them when Hanji brought them with her to work last season.

"Oh they're doing just fine. Still weird how they ended up in Mike's saddle though. I didn't think they'd actually bite him in the pe-"

"Okay Shitty Glasses that's enough." A gruff voice cut in.

"Oh, hey Levi. Didn't see you there." Hanji held a fist to her mouth trying to conceal her laughter. "Your height makes it hard to spot you."

Sasha and Connie swapped glances for a split second before stifling their own laughter. The shorter man walked over to them, eyes slightly narrowed. "Careful there Shitty Glasses. I could get you fired for that." He turned to look at Connie. "And you. Shitty Shit. Standing beside Braus here you would've looked like her son if I hadn't known any better."

Hanji merely punched him in the shoulder playfully. "Aww lighten up Levi. I know you can't really bring it in yourself to get me fired. And besides, my position makes me invulnerable to termination."

"Maybe that's because you're fucking the head director." Levi muttered under his breath.

"That's rich, coming from the guy who's screwing the head barista."

"What was that?"

"_Anyways_," Sasha cut in, hoping to escape the awkwardness of the situation. "I really ought to go to my room now. Mikasa probably set out her stuff already."

She glanced at Connie and nodded, both muttering their goodbyes. They were barely five feet away from the two they exploded in laughter.

"My god did you see the look on Levi's face?"

"He looked like he was about to murder someone."

"Did ya hear? Rumor has it he's planning on proposing to Petra."

"Where'd you get that from?"

"Hanji. Duh."

"Meh she could never keep her mouth shut anyways."

She raised her eyebrows and cocked her head to the side in agreement.

"Anyways Con, give me time to finish unpacking before we head over to the courtyard. Thirty minutes?"

"Yeah sure." They both nodded and went to their respective rooms.

The rules in the dorms were simple. Girls take the rooms on the second floor, boys on the first. That was the only way to prevent and catch any hook-ups. That along with the creaky staircase and barred windows. Director Erwin had been pretty insistent on avoiding anything of the sort.

Sasha finally reached the door to her shared room with Mikasa, glad that the raven-haired girl left the door open for her.

"Hey Mikasa."

The other girl nodded and proceeded to fill her drawers. "Any idea who might replace Mike?" Sasha asked as she set her bags on her bed.

"Yeah. He's an old high school of ours. He's had experience for a while." Mikasa closed her drawer and walked over to help out the other girl. The brunette nodded gratefully proceeded to grab the bag filled with food and hide it under her bed for safe keeping.

"Hmm…I guess he'd fit in with Erwin's standards. He ever been to the club before?"

"Nope. The first time he's heard about the club was when Eren offered him the job." They both started to fill the other drawers with Sasha's belongings, the two of them sitting Indian-style on her bed.

"Does he know how to get here from the city?"

"Eren forgot to offer him a ride with us so he had to fend for himself."

"That poor bastard."

* * *

"Son of a..ha..ha…hachoo!" the man sniffed roughly and groaned. "Goddamit."

* * *

Sasha entered the main lobby, sheen of sweat on her forehead after a few warm up drills outside with Connie right behind her. Everyone else had already gathered there, light chatter filling the air along with the smell of dinner cooking up from the kitchen.

Levi stepped out in front.

"Shitty brats. Listen up I've got an announcement."

All chatter immediately died down. He nodded and continued.

"Ever since that _unfortunate_ accident with our last Equestrian Coach," Levi turned to glare at Eren. The boy cringed under his gaze. He turned back to the others, ignoring the glower Mikasa was shooting his way. "Mike Zacharius chose to retire for his health. In other words he wanted to die a natural death that involved him in a shit-filled adult diaper rather than die of a heart attack induced by you lot. Anyways, with Jaeger's help we managed to find a new employee to take Mike's place before we open tomorrow. But the idiot's late so I'm giving him until 7:00 before I fire him."

Sasha peered at the clock on impulse. _6:46. Nah I'm pretty sure he's not getting fired. The guy's got plenty of time. _

It took five minutes.

Exactly three minutes before the door opened.

Another two minutes for the man at the entrance to shuffle to the front where Levi was and glare at Eren.

It took exactly five minutes before her eyes nearly exploded from their sockets upon first glance at who it was.

_No fucking way._

"Everyone meet our new Equestrian Coach Jean Kirschtein."

* * *

A/N 1: So I decided to edit a few parts again. Just some italicizing and corrections. Nothing drastic I swear.

A/N 2: So its been a while since I posted and this is waaay overdue. But life was getting in the way. Along with school. Anyways, in the past month I celebrated my birthday (Its the day before Marco's XD), I've been bombarded with exams and projects and I've spent meaningless time posting covers on soundcloud. The link to my account is on my profile.

A/N 3: Shoutout to all of those who reviewed and followed. Like seriously. Never in my wildest dreams did I ever imagine something like this XD

A/N 4: The blonde with the undetermined gender I was referring to was Nanaba XD

A/N 5:Post a review if you have the time. The lesser reviews the longer the delay. Shitty readers (lol Levi mode XD don't worry i'm not that harsh :D)

till next time (^o^)V

edgeofmyemotions


	4. Terrified

Chapter 3: Terrified

Disclaimer: Again, I don't own a thing except this story.

_And this could be good_

_It's already better than that_

-_Terrified_, Katharine McPhee feat. Zachary Levi

* * *

_"Any chance I'm ever seeing you again?" Sasha asked as she dug her fork into her food. Jean's gaze remained steady on her as he answered._

_"Probably not, no."_

_Her eyes meet his for a split second before they drop to look at her plate._

_"Oh."_

_._

_._

_._

I should've seen this coming.

_._

_._

_._

What were the odds of total strangers meeting again anyways?

_._

_._

_._

Why would he even want to cross paths with an idiot like me?

_._

_._

_._

_"But,"_

_Her ears perked at the sound of his voice._

_"That doesn't mean I don't want to see you again."_

_Jean took her silence a sign to continue._

_"We'll meet again. One way or another. I can assure you that."_

_And that was when she chose to look up and meet his gaze. Her lips pulled into a smile that mirrored his._

_"I'd like that."_

* * *

She remembered how that conversation played out; how they spent a good few minutes in comfortable silence before she excused herself to go to the restroom. And how the afternoon sun shone through the window and reflected in his eyes. And also how Jean smacked the side of his head after a fly made its way into his ear.

When he said that they would see each other again she expected something along the lines of them passing each other by on the street, just giving each other small glances of recognition before turning back to their own business. Maybe even bump into each other over the holidays in a haze of Christmas Rush and snow. Hell, maybe they've already met before, in some cross-dimensional past life in which they fought fifteen-meter tall humanoid giants with oversized box cutters or something.

_But of all the horses of all the county clubs in all the states in all the world he had to train with the ones _here_._

If fate was a teenage girl writing a story on a laptop to mess with her life, then yes.

Fate is a bitch.

Her breath hitched in her throat when their gazes met.

.

.

.

She saw his eyes widen for a fraction in recognition.

.

.

.

Her heart started beating erratically.

.

.

.

Warmth rushed through her being once more.

.

.

.

_The only person to make me feel this way was Berthold…_

.

.

.

"Jean!"

Eren's voice broke them from a trance neither of them knew they were in.

She could've sworn Jean mouthed a curse before turning his attention to Eren.

Sasha watched as he shuffled from his spot in the front to approach the other brunette. In an attempt to recover her thoughts she recounted what happened before…it happened. _Awkward applause. Weird looks and stares. Complaints about the F-ing New Guy. Jean scratching the back of his head then turning it to avoid the scrutinizing gazes of the older employees. His eyes shifting uncomfortably before meeting hers. The weirdest moment of visual contact she's ever experienced._

_Well done Sasha. You still have some of your sanity left when you barely had any to begin with._

"You alright Sash?"

She turned to the voice and exhaled uncomfortably. "I'm pretty sure you know who that is, right Con?"

He nodded, albeit a bit sluggish. _Probably as worried as I am._

"You freaking out or something? Need to leave?"

Sasha shook her head. "I'm not in a state of panic Con. Okay fine, maybe I am. I'm just…dunno, weirded out I guess. I'm not overwhelmed or anything. But I'm not underwhelmed either. I'm just…_whelmed_. I mean…he said we'd see each other again but this? Here?" she gestured with her hands to emphasize her point. "This is just way too much of a coincidence to be considered normal, ya know?" she paused upon seeing the blank expression on Connie's face. "Am I making any sense?" her head cocked to the side sheepishly as she asked.

The blank expression stayed on Connie's face as he shook his head. "Nope."

She shot him a look.

He threw his hands up in joking surrender. "Geez I'm messing with you Sasha. Lighten up will you?" he waited until she dropped her glare before continuing.

"I guess it is kinda weird to see him here of all places. But no need to get so worked up." He shrugs as she raises her eyebrows in agreement. "'Sides it's almost dinner time. Might as well talk to him to make sure you're still cool."

Sasha groaned in response. "Fine. You sure you don't have any ulterior motives here?"

Connie all but grinned. "I'm not making any promises." He deliberately ignored the glare she gave him and grabbed her by the shoulders. "Now," he spun her to the direction where Jean and Eren were still in the middle of an argument. "Go. It was about time you talked to your boyfriend." He unceremoniously shoved her forward before she could even reply.

Sasha staggered and regained her footing before glaring at him the third time that evening.

_I'll make sure to shoot an arrow between your kneecaps Connie._

She let out a sigh before taking a few steps forward.

* * *

Jean ran a hand through his hair.

"You didn't even bother to tell me how to get here from the city you dick!" he said, going full-on Italian with his gestures.

Eren grabbed him by the collar and shook him. Or more accurately, shook his shirt. The height difference made it difficult to pull off a choke hold worthy of Star Wars references. That didn't stop him from amplifying his voice though.

"I told you I forgot! Jesus!"

Jean's hand came into contact with Eren's shirt as well. "I had to hitchhike with some fat lard whose car smelled like a bear took a shit in it you asshole!"

"You wanna go Horse-face?"

"Bring it, dickhead!"

"Boys that's enough." Mikasa smoothly stepped in between them.

Both released the other from their grip and sighed in mutual surrender. As Mikasa dragged Eren to God-knows-where, Jean shifted uncomfortably in his place. That spat didn't exactly leave him with a good first impression.

"When you said you were gonna take some time off and relax, I didn't think that having screaming competitions with Eren in a country club in the middle of nowhere was what you had in mind."

He turned to the voice. A smirk graced his lips before he walked over to stand beside her.

"Well neither did I. But the idiot over there was more than willing to let me get a job before doomsday." He nodded over to where Eren was, said brunette in the middle of a conversation with Armin about God-knows-what.

Sasha giggled. "Good to see ya again too Jean." He watched as she comfortably crossed her arms under her chest and side turned her head to face him. He opted to just look ahead and observe the warm atmosphere that was the lobby of the Sina Country Club. Silence lasted for a few moments until he decided to break it.

"Hey Sasha?"

"Hm?"

"Mind telling me the ropes here?"

She nods with a smile before answering. "Oh yah sure."

She scanned the area for a moment or so before stopping. Her line of sight stopped to a group of people working in the kitchen. She grabs Jean's arm with her left hand while pointing with her right, coaxing him to look the same way.

"So I'm pretty sure you know Levi." She took his nod as a sign to continue. "Head manager, maintains the place and the employees. But I guess you already knew that." He watched as he talked to the lady beside him while playing with the ends of her hair. "The girl with him is Petra, head barista of the café in the main building. The three guys behind him are Auro, Gunther and Erd. They work with Petra at the café. Armin works as a waiter there from time to time." She nudges him again, this time to look at the blonde who was busy on his phone. "Other times he helps with maintenance, but his main job here is recording activities of everyday to send up to HQ for documentation. And I'm assuming you already know about Eren's position at the infirmary as head nurse with Mikasa." He nodded, shifting his vision to the pair beside Armin.

"Umm what else…oh yeah! See the lady over there with the ponytail and glasses?" he craned his neck to the direction she pointed to the said woman.

"That's Hanji, Supervisor. She keeps tabs on everyone and everything and sends Armin's reports back to Director Erwin back to HQ." He keeps nodding, taking in the information that she was giving him. The entire time he's internally amazed at how she knows the names of everyone who worked at the Club, from the maintenance to the instructors. _She's probably worked here for a while_, he mused.

Maybe he should actually listen to her. And stop enjoying the feel of her hand on his arm.

"The guy with the buzz cut over there is Connie. He teaches taekwondo. Umm...well the place hasn't exactly opened up the rest of its martial arts programs yet. Connie started just last season and we've been planning to add MMA and Krav Maga to the program. Maybe some Mhuay Thai, not sure. Erwin's still straightening out everything before we add anything more." She taps her chin as she surveyed the area once more.

"I guess that was everyone. Well other than that, work starts at nine, breakfast is at seven to eight. The time in between is usually spent for warm ups for instructors or for some last minute cleaning. Lunch is at noon. Time out is at 6, dinner's at 7 and you have free time until lights out. Weekends are free, obviously. Things are usually most busy in the summer for the most apparent reasons. Oh and speaking of cleaning, since you're working at a stable you might as well make sure that the place would be damn near spot less."

"Yeah I'll make sure of that." He gives her a smile before turning back to look at the lobby before him. From the corner of his eye he can see how she side turns her head to look at him. He also noticed how she pursed her lips before asking.

"So…Horse-face?"

He nodded numbly after letting out a groan. "Some stupid nickname Jaeger Bombastic made up in high school. Not sure how he came up with it. Next thing I knew I was branded for life."

The somewhat evil-looking grin on her face indicated mischief and sent his guard up.

"I am gonna get a lot of mileage out of this one."

"Heh. We'll see about that Potato Girl."

The smirk is replaced by an annoyed pout. "What did you just call me?"

"Potato Girl. Your new title after I became witness to the bottomless pit you call a stomach." He smirked. "Think it be perfect for a glutton like you?"

"Yeah and Horse-face is perfect too, for an ass like you." She retorted.

The smirk slid of his face in an instant. "What was that?"

"Dinner! Come on everyone gather up!" A warm voice called out. They both gave each other a glower before huffing indignantly and turning away. As she stalked away obviously as pissed at him as he was at her, he grumbled and followed the direction everyone went.

_Stupid Potato Girl. Stupid Jaeger with his stupid nicknames. Stupid horses._

* * *

Ymir scoffed at the TV screen as she rolled her eyes at the couple kissing in the rain. "How are they _not_ having pneumonia yet? Seriously."

The blonde looked at her with watery eyes. _My god is she seriously crying over this shit?_ "But Ymir! It's so romantic!"

"Krista she's kissing the guy who killed her father. Why in the bloody hell would you think that's romantic?"

"She's finally come clean with her feelings for him! After hiding it for so long she finally managed to let it all out!"

The freckled woman ignored how her heart pulsated painfully and faked another roll of her eyes. "It seems to me the only thing that's pushing her to do that is how bad she's grieving over her dad's death. She's using it as an excuse to kiss him like that." She watched how Krista played the next episode and deliberately ignored the opening theme. "And I thought you finished this series eons ago. Why are you watching it again?"

She noticed how the other girl flushed a few shades of red. "N-no reason in particular."

"Hey don't lie to me. Don't think I didn't see you look at your phone in between scenes. I can tell you've been texting him."

She laughed as Krista blushed more. "Don't worry about it. I can tell you like him Krista. No need to feel embarrassed." Ymir stood up from the couch and stretched her back before getting her bag. "Anyways it's getting late. I might as well go home now." She patted the smaller girl on the head before going on the door.

With a sigh she navigated through the all-too familiar living room, easily walking around plush sofas and expensive oak desks. She was only a few feet away from the door when a sharp voice stopped her in her tracks.

"Stop right there."

Ymir sighed again and turned around. She was met with the sight of Krista's mother, arms crossed over her chest, blue eyes piercing and full of scrutiny. Helena Lenz was definitely not pleased.

"What is it?"

"Don't play stupid with me."

"Alright fine. Maybe I do think you're a bit of an uptight bitch." The insult was completely casual but the malice was evident. She raised her hand to stop the older woman from snapping back. "But. I'm willing to set that aside for Krista's sake."

She dropped her hand with another exhale. "Are you sure this…arrangement is what's best for her?"

"You think I don't know what's best for my own daughter?"

"Forcing marriage on her isn't exactly the best option for her now is it?"

"We didn't have a choice."

"Yes you did. You could've rejected their offer. It's not like you needed to establish more money anyways."

She noticed how the older woman froze for a split second before glowering.

"What. Happened."

Helena's features hardened. "Let's just say that it won't just be Kirstein Corp. that will be benefitting from this…transaction."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Investors just love a good show. With their stocks we could increase profit ten-fold. They're just too stupid to actually use their own resources. So while they play along with this little show-"

"You'll be pulling the strings and gaining more output on your end." Ymir finished for her. She scoffed. "Whoring out your own daughter for revenue?" She scoffed again before making her way to the door. "You disgust me."

"Sacrifices have to be made for progress."

"To hell with that. You're a bigger bitch than I thought." The freckled woman slammed the door behind her before making her way out.

Ymir wasn't even ten feet away from the gate when she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket.

_Make sure to be careful Ymir! The streets are dangerous at this time of night. See ya tomorrow! ;)_

A bitter smile tugged at the corners of her lips.

_I hope he treats you better than I ever could Krista…_

* * *

Dinner was by far uncomfortably pleasant. The meal was beyond delicious, easily beating the hard-to-pronounce items on a menu from the fancy restaurants he's been to in the past years.

In the span of time the meal lasted, Jean had learned a lot of things aside from everyone's jobs at the Club as Sasha had told him about just a little while before. Like Levi's extremely vulgar and abrasive yet OCD inhabited personality and how it attracted the likes of someone like Petra who was the complete opposite. And random things about Hanji and her…_obsession_ for anything of the morbid macabre sort, from the Human Centipede to actual centipedes and dissecting innocent animals for science. (This was the part where he shuddered and lost his appetite. His plate was almost empty anyways so he didn't bother finishing.) There was also the nature of Sasha's relationship with Connie. It was there that he learned that they've been best friends since high school and nothing more than that. A relieved sigh escaped his lips when he found out their relationship was purely platonic. He shoved the thought as to why he did so for later.

Conversation was cozy, some snide jokes from Hanji's side of the table, crass comebacks from Levi's even some retorts from Eren and Petra. They bantered and joked around, made fun of each other and talked about their lives outside the club. Even if most of their life was spent in it. It was…pleasant.

The staff seemed less and less like strangers working for some guy in an office halfway across the state and more and more like a family, albeit very dysfunctional but nonetheless caring.

.

.

.

And he had just come into grips with the fact that now he was part of that family as well.

.

.

.

And that made him feel…well, _happy_.

.

.

.

(The giggles coming from a certain gluttonous brunette wasn't so bad either.)

.

.

.

He was gonna have to thank Eren for that at some point.

.

.

.

Not to mention,

.

.

.

He also owes a certain someone an apology.

Jean surveyed his surroundings. His eyes paused upon seeing a familiar head of brown hair. He strode over to her, being careful to not bump into everyone else in his course. Sasha was in the middle of playing Tekken on a PSP when he spoke.

"Hey."

She hit Pause and looked up. "Oh. Hey."

"Mind if I sit?"

She nodded and scooted over to the left to give him room.

Jean gratefully occupied the seat and turned to her. "About earlier…sorry about that. I can be a bit of a dick sometimes ya know?" he shrugged and awkwardly fiddled his thumbs as his gaze stayed on her.

She nodded again. "I can tell. Don't worry about it. I managed to put up with Levi's shithole for a mouth for the past couple of years. Guess I could put up with yours as well."

He chuckled lightly. "Guess so. No more name calling?"

"I'm not making any promises Jean." She grinned cheekily.

He couldn't help but smirk in return. "Same here." He exhaled a laugh through his nose when they bumped fists and slid into conversation.

Unbeknownst to the pair, a certain buzz-cut was watching them from afar.

_You say you've just met him. But it seems like you two have known each other longer than that._

* * *

_So how's your day going?_

_It's going just fine. Ymir was here a while ago. I'm watching Kyoukai no Kanata._

_Should I spoil it for you? Coz it's very tempting to spoil it for you._

_Noooooooo *pouts* you're so mean!_

_Aww. And to think I was starting to get to know you better._

_Hey I'm just kidding!_

_I knew that._

"I can tell you've been texting her for the entire time Armin."

Said blonde looked up at Mikasa with a look reminiscent to what you'd see on a child with his hand in a cookie jar.

"What? No." he laughed sheepishly until it died into silence. He cleared his throat. "No."

"Armin, no one just randomly looks at their crotch and smiles." her tone was light despite the deadpan in her words.

"Unless they're…ya know, auto-sexual." Eren scratched his chin in thought before adding. "Or a chronic masturbator. But you're neither. Unless of course-"

"No-no-no I'm good." Armin gestured wildly. "I mean-argh. Yes. I've texted her since dinner." He scratched the back of his head before letting out a groan.

"It's fine Armin. You like her. No need to deny it." Mikasa said as she put her hand on his shoulder.

"Yeah. Guess it was too obvious." he felt his phone vibrate in his hand. He couldn't stop the smile that formed on his face as he read her message.

_Who knew bumping into a girl while getting coffee could lead me to this?_

_Guess those terrible romance writers are on to something._

* * *

"No Jean, Hawkeye is the most badass of the Avengers."

"Sash you're just being biased 'cause he uses a bow and arrow. Tony Stark deserves that spot, hands down."

"Oh please. There's another billionaire-playboy-philanthropist in the comic book universe. His name is Bruce Wayne. And he's like I don't know, three times the man Tony Stark could ever be. And Batman is, _without a doubt_, the _best_ comic book superhero out there." She gestured her debate with her hands to emphasize her point.

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because." She looks at him with an unwavering expression. "He's Batman." She said like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

They spent a few moments staring at each other in silence before they both burst out into laughter.

Everything was calm for a few moments when the sound of shattering porcelain broke it.

All heads turned to the noise.

Shards of a broken bust lay scattered on the floor, a certain Eren Jaeger standing over it with a sheepish smile.

A shor- I mean _vertically challenged_ man pushed apart the surrounding crowd with minimal force. Mainly because everyone around him was too scared to stay in the same place.

"Alright kiddos. This is the part where you explain exactly what in the hell happened here."

His voice addressed everyone, but his eyes scrutinized only Eren.

_Guess somebody's in trouble. _Jean mused with a smirk. _Karma, you really are on my side._

When no one answered he strode to the mess with narrowed eyes. "Stand up straight Jaeger."

Said boy complied with a flinch.

"What we have here is a replica of our first founder Darius Zackly."

He squeezed his eyes tighter and tighter as Levi walked over closer to him.

"What used to be a century old heirloom of this club is now in pieces scattered on our shitty floor."

_Goodbye to this beautiful, cruel world. _

"And for that, punishment has to be set out."

He felt the shorter man's hand raise up to the level of his face...

And flick him in the nose.

His eyes flew open in an instant. "What the hell?"

Levi drew back his hand and faced the crowd. "And that," he kicked a stray shard of porcelain under his boot. "Is how you train a dog."

Jean turned to Sasha and flicked her forehead.

"The hell Jean?!"

He drew back his hand with a smirk. "I'm not sure what species can eat as much as you Potato Girl but I guess that'll have to do."

She shot him an annoyed pout for a split second before laughing.

He did nothing to stop himself from laughing with her.

* * *

The next morning Sasha found herself at the archery training grounds. She was half way done with her regular warm up when a voice broke in.

"Good morning."

On impulse she drew and pointed her arrow at the source. With a sigh she lowered her bow upon seeing who it was.

"Jean you of all people should know not to sneak up on an armed person."

She suppressed a laugh at the sight of Jean raising his arms in surrender. One hand was empty the other had an apple in it.

_He must've grabbed that before heading out here._

"Good morning to you as well."

He folded his arms over his chest and nodded to the object in her hands.

"You good with that bow?"

"Nope. Of course the Club would want untrained amateurs to teach their patrons how to use deadly weapons." _Damn. He's really started to rub off on me._ She scoffed. "Of course I am."

"Prove it." He tossed the apple in his hand in the air and caught it, repeating the action almost teasingly. As if he was challenging her.

"Before you say anything stupid, no I'm not gonna ask you to balance that apple on your head and stand by that tree and shoot it from here. Levi would have me clean the bathrooms for a month if he caught sight of it. And it's extremely dangerous, no matter how good of an archer you are. You make it sound like you trust me with your life."

"You know, according to Chinese legend, once you save someone's life, you're automatically responsible for it. So yeah, I pretty much do."

She ignored how her heart leaped up to her throat and narrowed her eyes at him. "Not the point. And besides," she shifted her body back to the target board. She raised her bow and drew, taking in a breath as the string tensed against the arrow. "You'd be scared shitless before I could even draw."

She released. Bull's eye.

Sasha sighed. Then suddenly smirked. "But there was something else I had in mind."

"What?"

The apple he was absently tossing back and forth was barely an inch away from his fingers before an arrow pinned it to the tree behind him.

Jean's eyes widened.

'_Oh my _god.'

He turned to stare at the impaled arrow with the same gaze.

Satisfied, she grinned and stepped up to him.

"How's that?"

"Damn."

She let out a small giggle. "I wasn't State Champion three years in a row for nothing." She added cheekily.

"Hey Sasha?"

She hummed in response.

He turned to her and flicked her forehead. Her hands automatically reached for the same spot.

"Ow! The hell was that for?"

_For scaring me shitless. _

"For not warning me first."

_No man would admit he was scared of death. Especially not to a girl._

She pouted. "Well at least you aren't as scared as you would've been."

He rolled his eyes at her and scoffed. "Oh please. Nothing can scare me as much as when my mom forced me to get married."

"You couldn't have been _that_ scared."

"No shit. I was downright fucking _terrified_."

They stood there in silence when he nodded at the impaled arrow.

"Want it?"

She smiled and nodded. "Yeah sure."

He returned the nod and walked over to where the arrow pinned the apple to the tree and grabbed it by the shaft. It gnawed against the wood as he tried to rock it out of place.

"Wait Jean-"

She was cut off by the sound of snapping wood.

He smiled sheepishly as he handed her the apple with one hand and held the broken arrow with the other.

She ignored his offer and walked over to the tree. A groan escaped her lips.

"The hell Jean! The tip's still in the bark!"

He moved to stand beside her and observed how her cheeks puffed out in annoyance. "Any chance we can get it out?"

"If you're willing to lend your teeth to pull it out then go ahead, be my guest."

_Okay note to self: she can be downright sadistic if she wanted to be._

As he watched her laugh at her own joke, nose crinkling and hair being swayed around by the wind, he couldn't suppress the smile that started to pull at his lips.

_But… three months in a country club in the middle of nowhere doesn't seem so bad anymore._

* * *

A/N 1: What century is it? Dear god I cannot even excuse how late this is. Chapter 4 is still in the making but not to worry, as I said, I'm not giving up on this story!

A/N 2: Yes, I referenced the first ending of SnK. I had to.

A/N 3: Thank you again to everyone who followed, reviewed and favorited. You're the ones who keep me going with this fic. Along with my brother who forces me to update. Hugs for all of you!

till next time my lovelies!(^o^)V

edgeofmyemotions


	5. I Always Knew

Chapter 4: I Always Knew

Disclaimer: I own nothing but this story.

* * *

_I try my best to unwind_

_There's nothing on my mind but you_

-_I Always Knew,_ The Vaccines

* * *

Over the first week that Jean had started working at the Sina Country Club, he had to say, things had been pretty good. Sure, he ended up being the last to roll out of bed on the first day of operations but aside from that, the schedule had been fairly easy to adjust to.

He had to admit though, the employees were something he needed a little more time adjusting to.

**\- SIX DAYS AGO –**

"Kirstein!"

Jean accidentally swallowed a mouthful of breakfast without chewing as his back jolted straight on instinct.

"Yes, sir?"

_Sir? What am I, a soldier? _

Levi narrowed his eyes for a second at the title. "Breakfast is over. Time you cleaned up your station. The stables have been untouched since Mike lost all feeling in his groin last season."

Jean stood up with furrowed brows.

"Isn't it a bit too early, though? Don't we have at least another two hours before we actually open, sir?" he checked his watch to make sure.

"Glad to know you're on schedule, Kirstein. At least you know exactly how much time you have to make sure that shit-hole turns spotless." He disappeared for a minute and came back with a rake and a few other cleaning supplies which he then shoved into the taller man's arms. "You'll be needing these as well." And with that, the supervisor left.

Jean shrugged and made his way out of the dining hall, not noticing the gazes of absolute horror from the rest of the staff.

_It's just the stables. Did this before back in the academy, couldn't be any different now_, he thought. _I should probably put in some hay as well._

He stopped in front of the stables to put on the mask and gloves that had come with the supplies Levi had given him and opened the door.

_Smells horrible. Nothing new here. _

He opened the door to the first stall.

And almost threw up right there.

_No turning back now, Jean._ He gulped as he entered and met his inevitably shitty fate. _You brought this upon yourself._

Later that night Jean took longer in the shower than Levi.

**-FIVE DAYS AGO-**

"Steady there, Buchwald." Jean murmured to the horse he had recently become more acquainted with.

His last session had just ended just a few minutes ago and being the responsible person that he was Jean opted to brush out the manes of the horses before letting them back in their newly cleaned stables.

"Hey, Jean." Eren's voice popped out of nowhere. Jean only nodded and hummed in reply.

"You having fun at your family reunion?"

Eren barely dodged the horse brush thrown his way with a laugh.

"GODDAMIT EREN I SWEAR TO GOD I WILL KILL YOU IN YOUR SLEEP."

**-FOUR DAYS AGO-**

"Shut up, Potato Girl." Jean deadpanned to the brunette behind him. Apparently he got himself into another stupid argument with the girl (this time they got into the age-old PlayStation versus XBox argument; a completely common topic but still leading to a stupid debate, nonetheless). Jean had already made the move to walk away as means to end their debate, but Sasha didn't really take the hint.

"Not unless you admit that I won, Horse-face!" she yelled as they entered the dorm common room.

Connie's shaven head popped out from the couch.

"You two have pet names for each other already? Talk about going steady."

Jean and Sasha turned to him, argument momentarily forgotten.

"SHUT THE HELL UP CONNIE."

**-THREE DAYS AGO-**

"Argh fucking shit." Jean cursed as he cut himself with the knife he was holding. Much to his surprise, chores were also assigned to each staff member for every night. Tonight he was assigned to help out Petra in the kitchen for dinner.

Levi shot him a look, shamelessly wearing a bandana and a frilly apron as he entered the kitchen. "And you, shitty fuck, watch your language." He went over to the cupboards to get some tableware before going into the dining room.

Jean turned to Petra. "Didn't he just curse himself?"

Levi's voice boomed from the dining hall. "If you're gonna curse, at least do it in proper grammar!"

Petra let out a giggle. Jean raised a brow. "I honestly don't know what you see in him, Petra."

The woman sighed. "Sometimes I don't either. But he can be really sweet if he wants to be. And he used to live on the streets, you know. Can you cut him a little bit of slack for having such a foul mouth?"

Jean was slightly taken aback by the revelation but nodded. "Fine. I guess that explains the sailor mouth. Does that explain the OCD as well?"

"Oh no, he had that OCD even when he was a street urchin."

"Huh?"

"Instead of finding missing merch in a grocery store, the place would end up spotless. Well, of course, that was to cover up for the actual stuff that he stole to make ends meet. "

"Wait, what?"

**-TWO DAYS AGO-**

"So does anyone want to watch a DVD with me?" Hanji asked as everyone filed in the common room after dinner.

"Sure. Why not?" Jean said, oblivious to everyone fleeing the common room and heading straight into their bedrooms.

"Yay!" the bespectacled woman put the disc in the player and hit Play.

In five minutes, Jean's expression turned from moderately bored to downright horrified.

"JESUS CHRIST WHAT IS HE DOING WITH THAT?"

**-ONE DAY AGO-**

His last session had already ended and he had another half hour before lunch time. But apparently, instead of sneaking in some time for a much needed nap, Jean opted to watch Sasha do some drills on the boards. He had also opted to use the next half hour to strike a nerve in her.

"Wow, bull's-eye again. Not bad for a Potato Girl."

She huffed and rolled her eyes. "Will you ever drop that?"

His face remained blank as he answered. "Probably not, no."

She grabbed another arrow from her quiver. "If you don't want me to neuter you, Horse-face, I suggest you stop calling me that."

Jean scoffed. "Like hell you wou-"

He got cut off mid-sentence by the sound of rushed footsteps and by an arrow suddenly within dangerous proximity of his groin.

"Call me that again. I dare you."

If the arrowhead a hair's width close to puncturing his loins didn't scare him, the deathly serious yet calm tone in her voice did.

"Okay, okay. I'm done! I swear!" He backed away into a nearby tree, wincing as the back of his head struck something sharp. _Damn, even the trees are trying to kill me here, huh?_

She pulled back her bow and smiled. "Great!" She laughed and stretched her back a bit. "Anyways, I promised I'd help out Petra for lunch. See ya!"

He watched as she gathered her arrows from the target board before skipping happily into the direction of the dorms.

_What the _actual_ fuck._

He had just witnessed her personality flip 180 degrees and flip back to its original self for a full 360.

_I should consider getting Eren to do some psychological tests on her or something. There's no way a mood swing like _that_ could be healthy for her._

**-END FLASHBACK-**

Needless to say, Jean's first week at the club had been rather... eventful.

(That is, if you consider recurrent mental scarring, getting insulted on a daily basis and nearly losing his manhood as eventful. But alas, eventfulness is in the eye of the beholder. Oh well.)

The threat of emasculation aside, Jean really did have a good time. Meals were consistently good and his new coworkers were pretty easy to get along with. His roommate Thomas was pretty cool, and Hannah and the rest of the girls were incredibly nice as well. Even his patrons -though most of them being either wealthy men at least twice his age or teenage children of said men- weren't the least bit rude and obnoxious as he had expected them to be.

What made everything better and all the more relieving was the fact that his parents hadn't bothered to call him. Not once. Not even a voicemail. For that span of time, Jean finally felt free from it all and could finally spend his time peacefully. (Or at least as peaceful as it could get with his new co-workers.)

He could only hope and pray that it would stay that way for the next three months.

* * *

Sasha was in the middle of waxing her bowstring when she heard a knock on her door.

"Who goes there?"

"It's me, Sasha." Despite being muffled by the door, Sasha immediately recognized Connie's voice.

"Oh you can come in, Con; I'm not changing or anything."

The buzz-cut had opened the door in reply. "The briefing is gonna start anytime soon, Sash."

"What, already? Hold on." the brunette closed the canister of beeswax and placed it on her nightstand before hanging her bow on the hooks above her bed. She turned to Connie.

"I need to change, bro."

Connie, immediately getting the unspoken memo to leave made his way out the door.

"About time you did. You smell like death."

Sasha scoffed. "At least I shower every day. Unlike you."

"And I don't have to. 'Nother perk of shaving off all my hair."

"Not everyone can pull off Lord Voldemort, Connie."

She smirked as he froze. _I win. _

"Just the shut the hell up and get changed."

As soon as the door shut behind him, Sasha replaced her sodden uniform polo shirt with a tank top. She stole a glance at the mirror and adjusted her ponytail.

_Maybe it's too cold for something like this?_

Without thinking any further, she grabbed a jacket from her drawer and shrugged it on before opening the door.

"I'm good. Let's go."

Connie eyed her for a minute before leading the way to the stairs down the common room.

At first she thought she was only imagining it, but by the third time Connie looked at her as if she was about to have a seizure on the spot, Sasha shot him a look.

"What's up with you?"

The boy pursed his lips together before meeting her gaze. "I hate to break it to you, Sash, but... isn't that Berthold's?"

She froze in her tracks.

_How could I forget? _

* * *

_Sasha had never been a fan of parties. Sure, free food and a good time with friends had always been things she welcomed with open arms. But when it came down to it, the thought of being in a room with at least fifty sweaty (and not to mention, completely wasted) bodies wasn't really on her list of favorite things to do on a weekend. _

_So there she was, sitting on the steps of the back porch of God-knows-whose dorm, doing her best to block out the apparent __noise_ _they dared to call music that blasted from inside. _

_It was the night before graduation, and after surviving the academic __holocaust__ they called Finals and the declaration of graduates, they all took it upon themselves to party the whole night away. It was all light and casual for the first few hours until suddenly, someone came in with booze and spiked the punch bowl to ensure everyone gets plastered and, before they knew it, the whole place had turned no better than the underground bar near the campus. Couples had already begun disappearing into the bedrooms and some had even started making out on the dance floor, some random guy showed up and took up_ _position as DJ and blasted away. And soon enough, the place had gone chaotic. _

_Sasha had escaped into the back porch before things had gotten too out of hand. Being the good friend she was, she had chosen to stay and patiently wait for any one of her party animal friends to come out or look for her so she could _finally_ go home. _

When did I assign myself to be everyone's nanny anyways?_ She grumbled. _

_The door behind her opened and was soon followed by a voice._

_"Sasha?" _

_The brunette turned to the voice and did nothing to suppress the smile that began to form upon seeing whose it was. _

_"Oh, it's just you, Berthold." She patted to the empty space beside her as invitation and the boy gratefully occupied it. He nodded to the door behind them._

_"You're not gonna join the others?" _

_"And by that, you mean get completely inebriated?" she quipped with a smile. She let out a laugh. "I'd rather pass." she met his sideways glance. "You?" _

_Berthold merely shook his head with a smile of his own. "You know I'm not into that kind of stuff." He tilted his chin to look at the sky above them. _

_Sasha followed suit, taking in the black sky already inked with constellations. "Wow. Beautiful night." _

_"Yeah." _

_She stole another glance at the boy beside her with a smile before looking back up. _

_She loved moments like this, when it was just the two of them in their own little world. She had seen Annie leave a few hours ago just before the booze had started to kick in, leaving Berthold in the not-so-capable hands of Reiner. _

_"So, what now?" Berthold suddenly said, turning to her. _

_"Well, we could always just sit here until the music dies down so we can go home or wait till one of our friends passes out and we have to bring them back to their dorm." she said, turning to him. "Whichever comes first, at least." _

_"No, not that. I mean," he sighed. "What now?" _

_When she cocked her head to the sided he took it as a sign to continue. _

_"When we were in middle school, we talked about getting into the high school we wanted. When we were in high school, we talked about getting into the university we wanted. For the past three years, we've been doing nothing but endlessly studying and cramming and stressing over exams and passing. And now we're graduating tomorrow. Just...what the hell are we supposed to do now?" _

_Instead of gracing his question with an answer Sasha merely narrowed his eyes at him. "You only talk this much when you're either drunk or tired. Which one is it?" _

_"Well, that punch Reiner gave me earlier did taste a little funny."_

_Her brows rose to her hairline in a mix of surprise and amusement as she nodded. "I see. But I'm gonna humor you anyways." She pursed her lips in thought before continuing. "The thing is, Bert, you make it sound like we're at the finishing line. Truth be told, school is just the beginning. Guess as soon as we get the diploma, we're just gonna have to make our own choices and carve our own paths. You know what I mean?" _

_He rested his hand atop her head. "Yes. And one day I'll take the path on becoming an astronaut." She laughed when he ruffled her hair. _

_"Just how much 'punch' did you drink exactly?" She air-quoted. _

_He removed his hand from her head to count with his fingers. "Not sure. I lost count after three cups?" _

_Sasha let out something between a scoff and a laugh._

_"You're hopeless."_

_He raised his hands in defense. "Hey, I'm still sober enough to know what I'm doing." _

_"Good. There's no way I can carry you back to your dorm once you've passed out." _

_"Reiner can take me back," he argued lightly. _

_"Do you honestly think he can help you back when he's completely plastered himself?" _

_"Hmm. Fair enough." _

_They spent the next few moments in comfortable silence. _

_Well it was comfortable for Berthold, anyway. Sasha on the other hand tried her best not to blush and fidget in her seat. Just a few nights ago she had promised Connie she would finally confess to Berthold before graduation. Judging by their current position, now seemed absolutely perfect. _

_She looked up to gaze at the stars above them. _Maybe I should? How do I even tell him?

_All thoughts of confessing however, and maybe even all thoughts in general, were cut off when she let out a loud sneeze. _

_"Achoo!" _

_Berthold turned to her instantly. "You alright?" _

_She nodded and wrapped her arms around herself. "Just a little cold."_

That's what I get for sitting outside in the middle of the middle of the night. _She grumbled to herself._

_She heard unzipping of a zipper and the rustling of fabric before feeling an article of clothing drape over her shoulders. _

_"Here, take my jacket. You shouldn't be getting sick the night before graduation." _

_She tried her best to ignore how her heart jumped around in her ribcage and fit her arms through the sleeves. With a grateful smile, she turned to him. "Thank you." _

_Those were the last words she said before her breath lodged itself in her throat. _

_Their faces were merely inches away yet they did nothing to break eye contact. _

Any closer we could...

.

.

.

_She was too busy in her own thoughts to notice he was already leaning in as well. _

.

.

.

_"Berthold I…" _

.

.

.

_Her train of thought was sent to an abrupt and screeching halt when a resounding crash and the shattering if glass echoed from inside the dorm. _

_Berthold jumped to his feet. "I think it's time I should get Reiner." He stole a worried glance through the window. "And by the looks of things, you should get Connie as well." _

_Sasha staggered to get up but he had already opened the door. "Wait. Your jacket!" _

_"You can give it tomorrow!" He called out over his shoulder._

_And with that he was gone. The rest of the night had been much of a blur for her. _

_Luckily enough, the ceremony was in the afternoon, which gave plenty of time for majority of the graduating class to get over their inevitable hangovers and for Sasha to properly launder Berthold's jacket and put it in a paper bag. _

_She wasn't sure if he had forgotten about the jacket, or if he just didn't get the chance to properly approach her about it. But sadly for her, he had already disappeared to God-knows-where with his parents and with Reiner right after the ceremony. _

It's okay, I'll just hold on to it for the night and give it back to him soon.

_Being the scatterbrain that she was, Sasha herself also forgot about giving it back to him and 'for the night' ended up being for four years. Oh well._

* * *

"Sasha?"

The brunette was broken out of her stupor. "Oh. Sorry, Con. I just... spaced out, I guess."

Connie all but sighed in return. "Listen Sash, I'm not gonna hold it against you. Just thought you should know." He grabbed her hand and dragged her along to continue their pace. "Don't you think you should get rid of that thing, though? Or at least give it back to him?"

Sasha exhaled her discomfort. "Yeah but... I just want to hold on to it for a little bit longer, ya know? At least until I can start getting over him?"

_It's the only thing I have left of him. Just let me have it for a bit longer._

He eyed her skeptically, as if he had read her mind. "Whatever you say."

She plastered a smile on her face and punched his shoulder playfully.

"Don't worry, Con. That day will come soon enough."

As they made their way through the glass doors, Sasha could only wish it could've sounded more convincing.

* * *

The common room was already abuzz when Jean entered. Seeing that most seats on the couches had already been occupied, he took his own spot somewhere in the middle of the crowd that had formed behind the sofas, giving his co-workers the occasional half-hearted wave.

Jean looked around, taking note that some had even begun to sit on the carpet in front of the fireplace and sweat-dropped.

_This looks more like a family gathering than a staff briefing. _

"Alright. Everyone, settle down." Levi's gruff voice called out. He didn't shout, and judging by how everyone immediately stopped talking, he didn't really have to. With a nod he continued.

"Alright." He cleared his throat as if signaling the briefing had begun. "As Shitty Glasses over here may have already spread around," he turned to glare at Hanji who all but beamed in return. "I'm here to put the rumors to an end by saying yes, Petra and I are getting married."

Everyone burst out into cheers, the noise being much louder than before the briefing started. From where he was standing, Jean noticed Petra stepping forward and joining her fiancé."

"Now, now." She chided in the tone a mother would use in talking to her children.

"Did you knock her up?" a voice drawled out from the back.

_Definitely Connie_, Jean thought.

The buzz-cut was answered with a one-fingered salute from Levi and a smiling death glare from Petra.

Satisfied that he had shrunk and cowered away, Petra continued their announcement with a less deadly smile.

"Anyways, you're all invited, of course, and the ceremony will be held right here in the club because it's practically like home to us."

"Or maybe because we're too broke to book anywhere else." Levi muttered under his breath. Petra elbowed him in the ribs with a pout.

He met her glance, unfazed by her blow, and turned back to the rest of the staff.

"Anyway, now that we got that aside, Director Erwin here just arrived from HQ with a few things he'd like to say."

Jean watched a tall blond man step in front.

_So_ that's _Director Erwin._

He cleared his throat. "Good evening, everyone."

He was responded by the staff collectively. "Glad to know you're all present. As many of you have already heard, Dot Pixis has been trying to settle things at HQ regarding new additions to our Martial Arts program. I'm here to personally tell you that our request has been granted. Starting next week we will be offering Muay Thai, Mixed Martial Arts and Krav Maga into our services."

Everyone clapped. Connie had stopped cowering in his corner and raised his hand.

"Yes umm…Connie, was it?"

The buzz-cut nodded. "You said we'll start with the new additions to the Martial Arts program by next week, right? Does that mean you already hired instructors?"

Erwin smiled. "I was getting to that, actually. And yes, we already hired instructors. We have a female coach for Muay Thai and two male instructors for MMA and Krav Maga. I'm assuming there's still space in the women's quarters?"

At this, a girl whose name Jean had remembered to be Mina spoke up. "Actually the bed beside mine is still empty. I wouldn't mind having a new roommate," she said with a smile.

The director nodded. "And for the men's?" He turned to Armin.

"If I'm not mistaken, there's an empty room down the hall beside mine and Eren's."

"Alright. The instructors will arrive next Saturday. Be sure to extend to them your welcome."

Levi spoke up. "Yes, and by then the rooms should be damn spotless. Are we clear?"

"Yes, sir!" everyone answered in unison.

Jean noticed the smallest of smiles pull on the corners of the older man's mouth. "Glad to know. Meeting adjourned."

And with that the crowd evaporated. Petra and a few others disappeared into the kitchen to make dinner. Erwin had gone to Hanji and, much to Jean's surprise, had also given her a kiss. Everyone else had gone to their respective groups of friends, chattering away at the latest gossip with the club.

Jean had been sketching when he was called for the briefing and accidentally brought his pad and pencil with him on the way to the lobby. With a sigh, he occupied an empty spot on the couch before flipping the sketchpad over to his most recent creation.

Not long after he had fully submerged himself to his sketching, Sasha had occupied the space beside him.

"Didn't know you were an artist."

"Well, taking up Fine Arts in college does that to you."

"So you took up Art when your dad was breathing down your neck for you to inherit the family business. Were you _trying_ to get him to disown you?"

"That was the point." he didn't really intend to make it sound like such a deadpan, but she laughed nonetheless.

They didn't say much after that. Their silence was mixed in with the chatter from the rest of the staff and with the scratching of lead on paper as Jean continued sketching.

"Can I see your other works, Jean?"

Without another word he shut his sketch book. "Here."

He didn't bother looking at her reactions as he flipped the pages. It wasn't because he was arrogant or anything. Nervous, maybe? Embarrassed?

She surprised him, however, when she gasped. "This is beautiful, Jean."

He turned to her, eyes disbelieving. "Seriously?"

She nodded. "Yeah." He watched as she flipped past a few more pages before smiling. "This self-portrait you made is pretty good as well."

"Self-portrait?"

"This." She showed him the current page she was on. It was one with a sketch of a horse.

Their gazes met for a split second before she burst out laughing.

"Goddamit Sasha." He said with a defeated sigh.

"Sorry, I had to," she replied with a grin as she held back more laughter.

Whenever someone would call him Horse-face he would've thrown a comeback or something. Punched them in the gut. Done anything to salvage his pride.

But just this once he let his pride to fend for itself as he chuckled with her.

* * *

Krista grumbled as she leaned her full weight on the plush seat of her family's SUV. She didn't really understand the point of her family owning so many cars if only two of them were going to be used on a regular basis. If anything, all the vehicles that were stowed away in their garage had been a total waste of money.

_Much like this trip_, a snide voice in her grumbled.

She had been oh-so content in dreamland just half an hour ago until her mother unceremoniously woke her up and told her to get dressed.

"We're going somewhere for the next two weeks," she told her over breakfast. "A little vacation couldn't do us any harm now, right?" She said with a smile that seemed a bit forced to Krista. Sadly, she had already been forced into the vehicle before she could mention anything about it.

"Can you at least tell me where we're going, Mother?"

The older woman merely handed her a flier. Krista took it into her hands. Her eyes only managed to scan over the address when she suddenly felt her bag vibrate on her lap. Being careful not to be within the line of sight of her mother's peripheral vision, she grabbed her phone from her purse and turned it on. She smiled at the message that showed on her screen.

_Good morning to you. Did you sleep well? _

Krista quickly typed in her reply.

_Top of the morning to you as well. And no, I wish I could say yes._

_And do you mind giving me a book rec? _

_Why is that? _

_Sure. Any specific genre you might want?_

_Mother dearest got me out of bed. We've been travelling for over half an hour now. _

_Umm anything will be fine? Most of the time I read John Green but now I wanna try something new._

_May I ask where are you headed? _

_Hmm...something not so romantic then? There's Maze Runner if you want a bit of dystopian adventure. Divergent is great as well and there's also a bit of romance in it. _

_Somewhere south of the state? Not sure with the address on the flier. _

_I've already read Divergent actually, the whole series. Loved it. I haven't read Maze Runner yet but I've seen the movie so I got the Glade slang down. That's the one right?_

_Any idea how long you'll be stranded in that vehicle? _

_And yep. The book is better, though. Trust me on that. _

She lowered her phone and met her mother's gaze through the driver's mirror.

"Mother, how much longer will we be travelling?"

"Another four hours or so, dear."

"Okay."

She turned back to her phone.

_4+ hours. _

_And I already trust your opinion. Don't worry about it. _

_Glad to know :)_

_And four hours huh? I guess that leaves plenty of time to talk then? _

She couldn't help but smile as she texted back. _Charming_ _as ever._

_Yes, yes it does._

* * *

_Okay. Steady your breathing. _

Sasha drew in a breath, fingers tense and curled around the arrow's shaft and knuckles barely grazing the fletching as she drew it back against the bowstring.

_One_.

.

.

.

_Two_.

.

.

.

"Sasha?"

On instinct, she pointed her arrow at the source of the voice. "Armin?"

The blonde had awkwardly backed behind the tree and gave her a wave. Sasha lowered her bow with a sigh.

"When are you people gonna learn not to sneak up on me when I'm holding a deadly weapon? Honestly."

Armin let out a nervous chuckle. "Sorry about that. Anyway, I'm here to give you your sched for this week. I forgot to go to you during breakfast."

"Oh, good. Anything new?"

He took out his clipboard (_Had he always had that?_ Sasha thought.) and flipped past the top pages.

"You can come out from behind there, you know," she said with a teasing smile.

Armin flushed. "Oh, right." Cheeks still visibly red (but strategically hidden behind his clipboard), he walked toward her.

"Umm, let's see... Well, your morning schedules with Flegel Reeves are still up. But in the afternoon your 1:00 to 2:00 slot is gonna be filled for the next two weeks. The client…" he flipped to the next page on his clipboard. "…has no experience with archery whatsoever. Never touched a bow in her life," he said as he looked back up at her.

"What, seriously? I'm gonna have to start from scratch with her?"

"I guess so, if that's how you're supposed to start with Greenies."

Sasha cocked her head to the side. "Greenies?"

"I mean, newbies. I meant to say newbies."

She nodded skeptically at him. "Okaay." she shook her head with a sigh. "Any reason why she suddenly wanted to try out archery?"

Armin shrugged. "Not sure. From what I can tell through the phone, she should be nearing her forties or something. Apparently, she's trying to try out everything here for the next couple of weeks, except maybe the Martial Arts programs. Hanji and I are having a hard enough time juggling her schedule with the other patrons'."

"Must be having a midlife crisis." She muttered.

He nodded in agreement. "Most definitely."

"Anything else I need to know?"

"Well, not really. I could just remind you to help Mina clean out the room for the new instructor but I'm guessing you already knew that."

She nodded. "Yep."

"Well, in that case I'll be off. See ya, Sasha."

"Yeah, I'll be seeing you."

As soon as Armin was out of sight, Sasha loaded her arrow again.

_What the hell is a Greenie? _She thought as her nose wrinkled in confusion.

With another breath, she pulled the arrow against the string, completely focused on her breathing and heart beat.

_One more time. _

_One. _

_._

_._

_._

_Two._

_._

_._

_._

Suddenly a baritone voice joined her own in her conscience.

.

.

.

'_You should definitely join the tournament Sasha.'_

'_I don't think I'm qualified for that kind of competition.' _

'_You're more than qualified. You can do it, I believe in you. Just believe in yourself as well.' _

_._

_._

_._

'_Thank you, Berthold.' _

.

.

.

She accidentally released as her eyes widened. The arrow had hit the target board just a few inches away from the center but Sasha knew she got distracted again. She let out a depressed groan.

_Not again. _

Without another thought she reloaded her bow.

_Goddamit, Berthold. _

* * *

Armin yawned as he entered the office, exhausted from going all around club grounds to brief and remind the instructors on their new addition.

He really didn't expect ending up working at a country club of all places, but somehow the job description just fit him perfectly. Organized, accurate at note-taking, willing to work with others and responsible with paperwork.

_Now that's a job meant for someone who's built like a daffodil. _

It's not all that time-consuming once he got used to documentation, and that left plenty of time for him to talk to his new found... friend.

Ever since he snuck in his phone number in the handkerchief he gave her, he never thought they'd be as close as they were now. Hell, he didn't even think a cheap trick like that would even work. Now, as they spent the last week conversing about everything and nothing through texts and even video chatting that one time...he had to admit that he had fallen for the blonde girl. Rather hard, he might add. He wasn't sure if it was her looks or her gentle nature or how she seems to listen to what he has to say with such interest, but either way, he was glad to have met her.

Was he going tell her though?

.

.

.

No. Most definitely not.

.

.

.

Well, not yet at least.

It's not that he doesn't want to tell her. Every fiber in his being is begging him to do just that but a more rational part in him managed to convince him to wait until the right time.

And besides, a girl like her? With a guy like him?

_Yeah, chances are extremely slim. Definitely never gonna happen. _

The vibration in his pocket snapped Armin out of his thoughts. He took his phone out of his pocket and peered at the message that showed itself on his screen.

_I'm gonna have to leave now Armin. I'll talk to you soon Shuck-face _

He sighed, both at the goodbye and at the apparent usage of novel slang but nonetheless typed a reply.

_Alright. I'll be seeing ya, Shank. _

He hit Send and shoved his phone back into his jeans.

"Hey there, kiddo." a familiar voice said.

Armin looked up to see Hanji's head peeping from the doorway.

"Oh. Hey, Hanji. Anything I can help you with?"

"Yes, actually," she said as she entered the file room.

"Mrs. Lenz is gonna arrive anytime soon. Usually, I'd be the one to show around guests once they've settled in their hotel room but Erwin-" she bit her lip and let out a nervous chuckle. "I mean, Director Smith and I have matters to discuss on the newly added Martial Arts programs. You don't mind filling in for me, don't you?"

Armin nodded. "Sure thing. She'll be in the Main Lobby?"

Hanji nodded and walked over to him to ruffle his hair. "Thanks a bunch. I'll make sure to make it up to you." She offered a backhanded wave before leaving the file room.

Armin sighed and grabbed his clipboard before leaving as well.

He made his way to the main lobby, making sure to flip the pages of his clipboard to the sheet that contained the Lenz schedule.

He finally reached the glass doors and made his way to a blonde woman who was standing by the reception and checking in with Mina. She met his glance with a cock of her head. Armin tucked his clipboard under his arm. One perk of staying in the same staff with the same people for years was that you didn't always have to use words to communicate. He formed his hands like how a kid would charade binoculars to show makeshift glasses, and then formed an 'X' with his arms with a shake of his head.

_Hanji's not available. _

The raven-haired girl nodded and immediately turned to her client. "Ma'am I believe your escort is here," she said with a smile directed towards him. Armin smiled back and nodded gratefully in return as the woman turned to him.

The boy cleared his throat with a fist against his mouth before giving her his business smile and offering her his hand.

"Nice to finally meet you, Mrs. Lenz. I'm Armin and I'll be your guide for today."

The woman smiled politely in return and shook his hand.

"May I ask what happened to Miss Zoe?" she said as their hands met and released.

"Oh, she's currently having a meeting. I'll be filling in for her today, if that's alright."

"But of course." She smiled coyly again.

Armin fought the urge to smile wider. _She's so nice. _

"Glad to know." He glanced at his clipboard. "If you'll follow me, Ma'am, I can lead you to our first lesson after you've-"

"Oh no, it's not me who'll be availing club services."

He cocked his head to the side, obviously confused.

"Huh?"

"My daughter will be doing that." She turned to a smaller blonde girl who was sitting on one of the Main Lobby couches and gestured for her to come over. "Krista, darling. Come, come."

Armin's eyes widened. _Krista?! There's no way._

He watched as the girl stood up from the couch and made her way over to them. As soon as she made her spot beside her mother and glanced at him, he was sure the look on her face mirrored his.

"This is my daughter, Krista, and she'll be the one availing of club services."

Armin nodded, partly in understanding and partly to make sure his jaw wouldn't drop any further than it already had and offered his hand.

He let his business smile mask the sheer terror he felt.

_Dear god, why did this happen to me? _

Krista shook it, eyes still noticeably wide for apparent shock.

He held her hand in his a second too long and hoped her mother didn't notice.

As if on cue she clapped her hands. "Well then! Just give us a minute to settle in our room and we'll be off!" She chirped. She grabbed her daughter by the wrist and dragged her to the direction of the elevator, bellhop with luggage right behind them. Armin only stared.

It wasn't until when the doors were about to close that he saw and read the look on Krista's face. Apparently, the non-essentiality for words to communicate applied between him and Krista as well.

_We need to talk._

Armin nodded just as the doors closed.

_Definitely. _

* * *

As soon as the door of her hotel room closed behind the bellhop, Krista let out a sigh.

Her mother beside her turned to her with a quirked brow in maternal intuition. "You know that boy?"

She frantically shook her head. "Nope. Just thought we looked an awful lot alike is all."

Krista inwardly winced. _Wow, great cover up Krista. Just wow. _

Helena tapped a finger to her chin in thought. "Now that you mention it, the two of you do look like twins from a few angles. Blonde hair, blue eyes and all."

The younger blonde inwardly sighed in relief. _Oh, thank god. _

"Krista, dear, I suggest you change in to something more comfortable. You'll be taking your lessons anytime now."

As she went over to the duffel bag her mother had graciously packed for her (and still not sure how she managed to do so without her knowing), a thought shoved its way into her mind.

"Wait, Mother. If I'll be the one outside, what will you be doing?"

"Well, I heard a friend that the spa here is one of the best in the state and that they're offering a special on seaweed wrap this month." She looked away as if guilty.

Krista's jaw dropped as her head had gone through the neck hole of her shirt. "You're no fair, Mother!"

The older woman merely giggled as she walked up to her daughter and motioned for her to sit on the stool in front of the vanity. She suddenly disappeared, probably to get something.

Krista merely stared at her reflection as her mother returned with a comb and a hair tie on her wrist.

She had begun to run the comb through her daughter's hair when she spoke. "I know that the kind of… _position_ I put you in is really unfair on your part, Krista. And I know that I've told you this so many times but this is for the good of our family." She set the comb on the vanity and begun to braid her daughter's hair as Krista's eyes casted downwards. "And I guess I don't really deserve the title of Best Mom in the World, mug be damned." She tied up the end of the braid and placed her hands on Krista's shoulders, prompting her to meet her gaze through the mirror. "But for the week I want you to forget about it and have a little time for yourself. I know how much you like your alone time, and considering how suffocating I was for the past months I guess you'd want it now more than ever."

Krista nodded, still unsure on how to reply.

She didn't really understand what prompted her mother to suddenly be so…considerate of her when it came to the engagement. The past months she had been a control freak over the wedding preparations, almost downright forceful when taking her to a dress fitting or another with a somewhat cold aura. But despite that, she was always a doting kind of mother, always keeping close watch of whatever she did. So why the sudden niceness? Didn't she just shove her into a marriage a few months ago?

Honestly, don't even get her _started_ on how her mother reacted when she came home late that night she was at the café with Armin.

And speaking of Armin…just _what _were the chances that he just happened to work at the country club her mother wanted her to go to? And as their tour guide, nonetheless?

And moreover, just how was she going to tell him that she was engaged? Just casually tell him? Not tell him at all?

And why did telling him bother her so much anyways?

Her mother's voice brought her out of her thoughts and back to the ground.

"You don't mind, do you? My appointment's still at three, so I'm hoping you'll be alright?"

Krista nodded, just realizing that her mother had been speaking to her while she was still wandering in the crevices of her own mind. She stood up and swept the braid over her shoulder before giving her mother a hug.

"Thank you Mother… I really appreciate it."

She released from the embrace and made her way to the door. She sighed as soon as she was in the elevator.

_Staying here can't be that bad, right? _

As soon as the elevator doors opened to reveal Armin patiently waiting for her where she left him, she smiled.

_Yep. Definitely not too bad. _

* * *

"Are you at the location I told you to be?"

"Yes. The ride better have been worth it, Patrick. Are you sure he's here?"

"Positive. Just keep your eyes opened. He'll show up eventually."

* * *

Krista smiled as Armin gracefully led her to her next lesson. She was grateful that the tour hadn't been as awkward as she thought it would have been, and the air in his presence, though silent, was light, almost comforting even.

"Mind explaining how you found out where I worked?" Armin finally asked Krista with a teasing smile as they made their way out a pair of glass doors.

"Mind explaining how you found out where my mom planned to take me?" The girl countered. She paused to take a deep breath, enjoying the fresh air and the smell of wild grass and flowers from a nearby courtyard. She turned back to Armin who had a look of exaggerated offense on his face.

"You make it look like _I'm _the stalker here. You're the one who just _oh_-so happened to be vacationing at my workplace which is, by the way, in the middle of nowhere."

She scowled at him, only to have him laugh in reply. He raised his hands up in mock surrender. "I kid, I kid."

The scowl was instantly replaced with a smile. If anything, she was smiling because she was glad that the casual tone in most of their online conversations also materialized in the ones they had in real life. She didn't really expect much from a walk to an archery instructor.

"Is archery hard?" Krista suddenly asked, a rush of anxiety unexpectedly washing over her at the prospect of learning a potentially lethal skill.

He turned to her with a thoughtful look. "Let's just say that it's nothing like you'd play on Wii. But believe me, Sasha's a good coach. I'm pretty sure she can shape up a Greenie like you in no time. And equestrian is a lot harder. Be glad you didn't have that as your first lesson here. You'll be having that after archery, though."

He suddenly stopped walking and Krista followed suit. She looked around to see that they were in a large, empty clearing, save for half a dozen or so target boards lined up perfectly on one side and the brunette girl leaning against one of the trees.

"Sasha!"

The girl turned to the sound of Armin's voice and beamed. Krista watched as Armin waved back and nodded to her as they walked over closer to her.

"Hey, Armin." Sasha said with a smile. Krista froze as she turned to her. "This the new student you told me about? Doesn't seem like she's in her forties to me."

The boy let out a nervous chuckle. "Oh that was a misunderstanding. She was actually planning for her daughter." He said as he nodded to the blonde beside him. "And forty or not, she's still a Greenie-" he faked a cough. "I mean, _newbie_ to archery, so you still have to start from scratch." Krista muffled her laughter with a fist, gulping back a smile when Armin turned to her with a look that said _I blame you for that_. "I'll be off now. I'll escort you to your next lesson after your session with Sasha's done." He said as he swapped glances from her to Sasha.

She watched his back disappear into the clearing. Sasha suddenly clapped her hands.

"Well, I guess we should get started."

Krista watched her disappear for a moment and return with a bow. She handed it over to her, and she stiffened slightly upon glancing at the unfamiliar weight in her hands.

"Thank you." The blonde said as she looked up to meet the other girl's gaze with a smile.

From that angle she had a better view of Sasha's face. And in the few seconds that they held their gaze, she immediately noticed the taller girl's eyes. They were the richest shade of chocolate brown with small flecks of gold and hazel.

Krista felt a tug of familiarity, but she couldn't really put her finger on why and from where.

Now, as Sasha had begun teaching her basics of positioning, from footwork to how to grip the bow and arrow, Krista racked her mind for any stock memory of her instructor as she did as she was instructed.

_I seriously feel like I've seen this girl before…_

"Krista?" the blonde was snapped out of her thoughts. "I told you to stand back for a bit. I'm gonna demonstrate how to shoot."

She nodded and shuffled a few steps back. From behind, she watched the girl take a stance and rather than taking notes on the current subject at hand like she should have, Krista's attention was still elsewhere.

_Even her voice sounds familiar now that I think about it. _

She tried matching it to something in her memory… and suddenly a loud voice cried in her head.

_I object! _

Krista's eyes widened. _There's no way. _

So apparently the country club where Armin was working also happened to be where her apparent _lifesaver _was working as well?

What was going on with all these coincidences?

Krista shook her head. _Maybe I'm wrong, _she thought as she brushed away the idea and turned her full attention to her instructor.

As if on cue with her thoughts, Sasha spoke. "Did you get that?"

The blonde slowly shook her head as she snuck a glance at the arrow that impaled one of the target boards. "Not completely. I can't seem to grip the arrow against the string properly yet." (That was partly true and not a cover up for not paying much attention. Krista blamed her tiny hands for that.)

"Don't worry; it's like that for every beginner." Sasha replied.

Krista managed a nod and tried her best to listen as she mimicked Sasha's positioning.

"Make sure you keep your footwork like that. Now when you grip the arrow…"

The other girl's voice had already faded away as her earlier thought started to sink in deeper and deeper.

Partly from complete curiosity, and partly to silence that annoying voice in her head so she could _finally _get her session over with, Krista gave in to her gut and lowered her bow.

"Hey, Coach?" she started, not yet completely sure if they were on a first name basis.

The brunette lowered her bow as well and turned to her curiously. "Hm? Something the matter?"

"Listen this is gonna sound kinda weird but…" she let out a sigh. "Did you attend a wedding at St. Rose Cathedral recently by any chance?"

Sasha nodded back slowly. Much too slowly for Krista's taste. "You can say that." She said as she looked away. Suddenly feeling impatient and tired of beating around the bush Krista blurted out.

"Please tell me you were the girl who objected that day? Honestly, the familiarity is killing me and I just got too curious for my own good."

Sasha stepped back slightly, but it didn't escape Krista's sight.

The blonde sighed again, immediately regretting the outburst. "Sorry. I didn't mean to impose or anything. You don't have to answer if you weren't her."

Her coach surprised her, however, when she nodded. "Yeah. That was me."

Krista sighed once more, but this time out of relief.

"I'm glad. At least I spared myself from the humiliation." She paused to look at the other girl whose expression was currently unreadable.

"Listen, I wanted to thank you for that. You're a lifesaver. Honestly."

Sasha's expression had changed from blank to confused until she suddenly laughed. "Oh my god. I thought you were gonna curse my existence or something!" She let her laughter die down before continuing. "You weren't really up for that wedding either, huh?"

_Either? _

Krista brushed the thought away with a shake of her head. "Definitely not," she replied lightheartedly. "But if you want to keep your existence curse free, Coach, I suggest you don't mention this conversation if my mother passes by."

The brunette nodded with a smile. "Definitely. And no need to be so formal, Krista, you can call me by my first name. I'm pretty sure anyone who dubbed me their hero is pretty much my friend."

_Friend, huh? _

Krista liked the idea a lot. The only real friend she had was Ymir. And Armin as well, now that she thought about it.

Sasha cocked her head toward the target boards. "We best get back to the lesson. We have 45 minutes left."

Krista nodded and began to take her position, this time a lot more focused than she was a few moments ago.

Sasha had been so patient with her in those forty-five minutes, softly pointing out if she needed to straighten or bend her arm a little or more, or if her feet needed to be a little farther apart.

Krista thought she had already gotten that hang of it. That was until she tried pulling the arrow back on the string.

"You need to make it go all the way, Krista." Sasha commented from behind her, obviously staying clear from her in case anything happened.

The blonde tried pulling it back even further, arrow still not completely straight in her grip.

"Okay, now, steady your breathing, like what I told you. Good. Now, I want you to release the arrow when you exhale."

When she released, the arrow barely hit the target and instead bounced off it and landed on the grass.

Krista winced. _Way to go, Artemis. _She lowered her bow.

Sasha put a hand on her shoulder. "The first shot isn't always perfect." She smiled before she went forward to retrieve the arrow and reappeared in front of her student who was still glumly looking at the ground.

"Here," she handed over the arrow to her and nodded back to the targets.

Krista took it in her hands and took the position to draw again, this time making sure to ignore the slight pain in her fingers.

"Krista, word of advice, don't just focus on the target. Focus on what you're doing first. The path to the target will follow soon after."

The blonde nodded. She released after two breaths.

The arrow hit the target, a little off to the right. It wasn't a bull's-eye but it was still a hit. She smiled and turned to her instructor who was smiling even wider.

"Nice shot."

The remaining half hour was spent emptying Krista's quiver under the afternoon sun. (Well, more like Sasha's. Either way, by the time they were finished the thing was empty.) Only half managed to actually hit the target board, which was perfectly fine by her.

They collapsed under the shade of the tree, the two panting heavily both from the heat and from exhaustion.

"You did good." Sasha said. Every word was punctuated with a gasp for air.

_That's what she gets for chasing after every arrow. _

Krista managed a smile and nod. "Yeah. By the looks of things I might have a chance of joining the Hunger Games or something," she said, turning to her.

Sasha had already gotten her breath back and had replaced her pants for quieter inhales and exhales. "Don't get too cocky there, Krista. Those were just the basics."

Krista nodded. "And speaking of Hunger Games… has anyone ever told you that you're an awful lot like Katniss Everdeen? I don't know, brown hair and deadly bow skills?"

Suddenly, the brunette groaned. "I get that all the time. Especially when the movie came out my best friend wouldn't shut up about it! Everyone kept telling me to cosplay Katniss or go as her for Halloween or something." She threw her hands up for emphasis. Krista only laughed. "Oh and don't even get me _started _on Armin! That was literally the first thing he said to me when I first started to work here. And I was stupid enough to have my hair in a braid that day! Honestly. "

Krista giggled again.

_That really seems like something he would do, s_he thought as she let her head lean on the bark. She heard footsteps and turned to it only to end up smiling wider. _Huh. Speak of the devil._

The blonde boy was making his way towards them with a wave. Krista waved back at him before standing up.

She stretched the kinks in her back for a few moments before turning to her coach. "I have equestrian next, Sasha, so I better get going."

Sasha immediately paled. "Equestrian? Wait, I don't think that's a good idea, Krista!"

Krista cocked her head to the side but the brunette had clamped her mouth shut when the other blond was less than three feet away from them.

_Did she have a fear of horses or something? _The blonde shook her head again as Armin arrived.

The smile on his face was bright. "You ready?"

She nodded. "Yeah." She turned to Sasha. "See you tomorrow, Sasha." She turned back to Armin with another nod.

Armin nodded back, stepped to her side, and led the way past the clearing and onto a cobblestone path.

"I'm really sorry you had to have your lessons so close together. We had a really hard time juggling your schedule with the other patrons'," Armin said apologetically.

"It's alright. Sasha was nice enough to finish five minutes early so I could catch my breath."

_Or at least so that she could catch hers. But that was beside the point. _

He nodded. "That's a relief. Equestrian is rather... difficult."

"Really?"

"Well, at least from what I heard. Hanji would come back to the file room to tell me that every first timer would comment about how hard it was to control a horse or something. It can't be helped, I guess. Equestrian is mostly for competition. But then again, we just changed coaches so I guess he'd go easy on you. Let's just hope the horses will."

"No need to worry about that, animals seem to like me." The girl said. "Well most of them anyways. That back alley cat still seems to have it out for me."

Beside her, Armin let out a chuckle, and Krista felt something flutter inside her chest as she laughed with him.

Their laughter died down just as they arrived at another field. It was significantly bigger than the clearing she took archery in. It had a short wooden fence around it and, not to mention, was a lot less empty. Krista could see a large structure by the side that she assumed to be the stables and a few wooden structures stacked beside it, things she would have yet to learn about.

Leaning on the gate of the fence was a young man, most likely her instructor. He was fairly tall and… had a familiar shade of ash brown for his hair.

She froze.

_No wonder Sasha didn't want me to go here. _

Krista was both glad and frustrated that Armin escorted her all the way to him.

If she had been alone she would've run the opposite direction in a heartbeat.

* * *

"Hello? Patrick, it's Helena."

"Ah, yes. Are my suspicions correct?"

"Spot on. Will you be coming here to pick him up?"

"Sadly, no. I've a full schedule for the next month and the month after."

"Hm. I thought you would've wanted to drag him back as soon as you've confirmed where he was."

"No, let him have his fun. He has only less than three months before I do that after all."

* * *

Jean ran a hand through his hair with a sigh. He was mounted on Buchwald and after letting Krista pick which horse she wanted to mount, he had started the lesson with barely audible murmurs.

Well, at least not before helping her up on her horse. With her short stature, she had a difficult time and Jean had helped her own by the waist to which he looked away and escaped from by walking towards his own horse.

He began by instructing her how to pull on the reigns, to which she easily complied without even looking at him. He'd point out some small errors in her handling, and she would nod and immediately correct them by herself as her gaze remained steady on the grass in front of her.

In short, the whole session was downright fucking awkward.

Apparently, she didn't really have much trouble with her horse as she was completely able to control it with a simple tug on the reigns.

"Looks like Harriet here really likes you."

Krista nodded but didn't meet his gaze. "Yeah." She stroked its mane before looking up to meet his gaze.

"Listen, Jean…I swear I didn't know that you were here and Mother just-"

Jean raised a hand as if to stop her.

"Look, Krista, let's just not talk about that. The wedding's still at least another two months from now, so please. Right now, we're just teacher and student, and maybe even friends. Sounds good?"

She nodded and smiled as if relieved. "Yeah. Sounds great." The horse under her whinnied as if agreeing to their conversation.

The two shared a brief fit of laughter before Jean cleared his throat.

"Okay, now that we got that aside, I might as well make you do a few laps around the field with Harriet. You seem to be a natural."

* * *

Sasha leaned her back against the bark of the tree in the archery field as the electric guitar riffs of Pierce the Veil's _Bulletproof Love _in her earphones faded away into the soft piano intro of a certain song Sasha remembered vividly. Too vividly. She gently set her head against the tree's trunk as unwanted memories began to flood in.

.

.

.

_It was prom night and Sasha only sat down while couples flooded the dance floor as _Faithfully _by Journey softly blared from the speakers. She was surprised, however, when a certain raven-haired boy started walking towards her. _

_He stopped in front of her and gave her a smile. "Hey." _

_She smiled back. "Hey." _

"_I just came here to say that you look beautiful tonight. Would you like to dance?" _

Is this really happening? This can't be real.

_Sasha nodded. "Of course." _

_._

_._

_._

_When the song had neared its end, the two still in each other's arms, Berthold smiled down at her. "I knew I wouldn't be able to leave without giving my best girl friend a dance." _

_The guitar riffs had ended. Sasha slowly backed away from his grasp and faked a smile. "Of course. I appreciate it, Berthold." _

_He patted the top of her head with a laugh. "Anything for you, Sasha." _

.

.

.

Sasha let out a frustrated sigh and changed the song.

_Not again._

* * *

_So where are you right now? _

_Having dinner at the restaurant here. Food's pretty good. _

_Why thank you. I'll make sure to let Hannah and the others know. _

_Who's Hannah? Someone I should know about? _

Armin's fingers practically fumbled over the touch screen of his phone as he typed in his reply.

_Nope. Just a co-worker. Jealous are we? _

Armin swallowed as her reply took too long to send, suddenly regretting his most recent reply. _Maybe I overstepped a boundary or two? _

It was Friday night, marking the end of the first half of Krista's stay at the Sina Country Club. Hanji had taken over for him when Tuesday came around, much to his dismay, but that didn't stop their texts from coming around full force. That also left him with the chance to serve her meals every now and then when he would take up on the waiting staff at the restaurant. Ah, was he a lucky bastard.

A full five minutes passed.

_Maybe I am :P Anyways what are you up to?_

If Armin's heartbeat had slowed down as he waited for her response, it had quickened and beat twice its normal pace upon reading it.

"Armin, where do you want me to put these?" Jean's voice suddenly said from behind him.

The blond turned to his taller friend who looked rather annoyed at the moment as he carried a box filled with old files. "On the top shelf. Sorry for putting you up to this Jean."

The other boy grunted as he lifted the box up a shelf that was at his eye level. "No problem. I'm just kind of annoyed that you're just standing there, texting."

Armin let out a nervous laugh. "Sorry about that." He didn't really seem sorry as he turned back to his phone.

_I'm reorganizing stuff in the file room. Busy work. _

"You know, you should at least mention that you have a friend helping you out."

The blond jumped at the voice. "Jean! It's rude to read other people's texts, ya know!"

"Yeah, but it's also rude to not credit your friends to look cool in front of a girl." Jean went back to his upright position. "And Krista, huh? Didn't know you had it in you to make a move so fast."

Armin flushed. "No, it's not like that! I swear!"

Jean only smirked. "Nice try, Armin. But any guy who's smiling like an idiot while texting is obviously texting the girl he likes. Have to admit, you do fast work."

The other boy shook his head. "Actually… I've known her for a week or two now."

Jean visibly seemed interested and nudged him with his elbow. "Now, how did _that_ happen?"

"I bumped into her while I was getting coffee after going to the bookstore. Literally. She ran head first into me and offered to replace my drink after she noticed that I spilled it. Then I gave her my number and…" he gestured to his phone. "You can see how that turned out."

"Okay, the coffee and the bookstore thing I expected, you're a bigger klutz than you are a nerd. No offense."

"None taken, nerd's a compliment."

"Whatever. But the number thing?" Jean let out a chuckle. "Who are you and what have you done to Armin?"

Armin chuckled as well. "Heh. Funny, that's exactly what Eren said when I told him about it." He took a once over at his office. "I think we're just about done here. Let's head back?"

The taller boy nodded. "Yeah. Dinner's about to start any time now."

The Main Lobby was quiet when they entered, save for the faint clinking of utensils from the restaurant and soft chattering from the staff. Armin could see Levi and Hanji checking up on Mina and Samuel at the reception, and a few other guests sitting on the couches- on their gadgets, taking advantage of the free Wi-Fi. He didn't expect two of those guests to be Helena and Krista Lenz.

And he certainly didn't expect actually running into them.

"Good evening, Mrs. Lenz." Armin greeted, mostly out of habit for protocol.

The woman smiled, her daughter with her head bowed down. _Feeling a little shy, huh_? "Good evening to you as well."

"Enjoying you stay so far, ma'am?" the blond started, common hotel staff etiquette.

Mrs. Lenz nodded. "Yes. And I also have to commend you for organizing my daughter's schedule. Thanks to you, Krista here got to spend some quality time with her fiancé."

Armin's head cocked to side, purely confused. "Fiancé? I could've sworn I booked her sessions to be private…" He snuck a glance at the younger blonde behind her who still had her head down.

"Oh no, don't be silly. So, Jean, did you enjoy spending time with Krista? I'm pretty sure there'll be more of that once you're married, no?"

Armin turned to Jean, who looked like he was about to say something, but whatever he had planned to say had been cut short by Levi's voice.

"Kirstein! Get over here!"

The said boy winced and cursed under his breath.

"I guess I'll have to see what Levi wants to do with me. If you'll excuse me…"

He turned to leave, but not before giving Armin an apologetic look.

A phone rang, and Mrs. Lenz immediately reached inside of her purse. "Ah, I have to take this one. If you'll excuse me…" She walked a clear distance away as she pressed the phone to her ear.

That left Armin alone with Krista. The girl had looked away and refused to meet his gaze with her chin still attached to her collarbone.

The boy bit his lip. "Krista, are you engaged to Jean?" His chest tightened as he asked.

When she didn't respond, Armin asked again, voice straining out of his throat as he felt his chest tighten even more.

"Krista. Are you engaged to Jean?"

When she nodded he couldn't take anymore.

"Well, I hope that goes well for you." He almost spat out as his voice shook.

Those were the last words he said before he walked away, something cracking inside of him as if he had dropped it in front of her only to have her step on it.

Armin quickened his pace until he was practically sprinting his way out the main building and inside the dorms. He had accidentally bumped into Eren along the way. "Armin? What's wrong?" The blond heard the brunet say followed by a rush of footsteps behind him.

Sad to say, he had already locked the door behind him before his question was answered.

Armin launched himself straight into bed, ignoring Eren's insistent knocking and calls. He waited for a few minutes for the noise to stop before he let out a sigh.

The first time he met her was purely by chance. The way his number-in-hankie trick had worked was just sheer dumb luck and meeting her again for a second time was just pure coincidence. So maybe the chance that she was single was just pushing it?

He slammed his face into his pillow and groaned.

_Maybe_. _I guess I _was _pushing it. A girl like that and still single? _Armin let out scoff. _As if. _

But still, did she forget to tell him? Shouldn't something as big as that be something you say the first time you meet?

For some reason Armin's inner voice droned up to a falsetto.

_Hi, my name's Krista, I'm twenty-two years old. I recently graduated from Stohess University, my hobbies include reading and watching anime. And by the way, just so you know, I'm already engaged, so better not fall in love with me, okay? _

Armin sighed. Okay, maybe that was kind of too straightforward sounding, and not to mention, kind of ridiculous. But honestly.

Why didn't she ever bring it up?

Did she honestly just forget or was she playing with him the whole time?

Tired and frustrated (and not to mention not being in the mood to answer his own questions), he slammed his head to his pillow a second time before willing himself to a dreamless sleep.

* * *

Eren sighed as he dropped his hand from knocking on the door.

_What the hell got into him? _

Mikasa had suddenly burst in through the front door and ran over to him. "Eren! I saw everything! What happened?"

The boy shrugged. "No idea. You should've seen the look on Armin's face, though. He looked like he was about to cry."

The girl frowned. "I hope he's alright." She spared a glance at the door and sighed. "And knowing Armin he probably slept it off. It's probably best if we leave him alone."

"Mikasa, he locked the door, where the hell do you expect me to sleep?"

"My room." She says without even hesitating. Or blinking. Almost as if she had the whole situation planned out.

Eren gave her a skeptical glance. "You sure?"

The girl nodded. "Yeah. Sasha wouldn't mind."

"Alright then." Eren made a move to walk towards the stairs, Mikasa not too far behind him. He stepped aside to let her through first like the gentleman his mother raised him to be and followed afterwards behind her. He winced as the stairs creaked beneath his feet. "I don't get how you girls get used to that."

"Well, it gets easier to ignore every once in a while."

Eren raised his brows in agreement as they reached the second floor and let her lead the way to her room. He opened the door for her -to which she nodded gratefully- and followed her inside.

* * *

Mikasa stared at the ceiling as she lay in bed. Sasha still had yet to return and it was almost lights out. With a sigh, she rolled to her side to watch Eren's sleeping form.

His face was peaceful as his chest rose in a slow but steady rhythm. The girl took note of the way his eyelashes were long enough to lightly graze over his cheekbones and how his lips parted a little as he snored lightly. It was strange really; to see him so relaxed. Most of the time his brows would be furrowed in a look of concentration when he worked on his research grant in the infirmary or he'd have a feral grin on his face when pulling pranks on everyone to monitor their stress levels to add to his research.

Mikasa let her eyes wander over to the brunet's hair which had completely covered his forehead and let out a small sigh. It shined against the pale moonlight that streamed through her window and looked incredibly soft. She wanted to run her fingers through it so much.

She would've been able to if only he was sleeping beside her instead of on the floor.

* * *

Sasha brushed some brown fringe away from her eyes and wiped away a small sheen of sweat that had begun to form on her brow. She was currently in Mina's room, fulfilling Levi's order to have her help the raven clean up the room for the new instructor after dinner.

"You didn't really have to do this, ya know." Mina said as she dusted the inside of the drawer beside the empty bed next to hers.

Sasha shook her head as she made the bed. "Well, Levi put me on duty with this so I obviously couldn't ditch if I wanted to." She tucked the sheets in the corners before standing upright.

Mina let out a sigh. "Well, you do have a point there. But we could always just do it tomorrow or something."

"Nonsense. If we did this tomorrow we would have less time for the movie marathon."

The brunette folded a blanket and set it over the head of the bed. "And I really don't mind anyway. Orders are orders. Better we do this now, too, before we forget." She fluffed a few pillows and tossed them on top of the blanket. "And besides, a lot has been on my mind lately. Just thought I could do this to get my mind off things, ya know?"

The other girl suddenly smirked. "And by things, do you mean a guy?"

Well, she would be lying if she said no. Sasha nodded slowly.

"You can say that." She shook her head. "It's kind of just up in the air and all up in my head, I guess."

Mina's jaw dropped.

"Spill! It's Jean isn't it?"

"What? No! What on earth makes you think that?"

The raven-haired girl giggled. "Anyone with a pair eyes can see that the two of you have been spending an awful lot of time lately. Always together every break and free time and 'just friends'? Nope, not buying it."

_It's not like we do couple stuff. Most of the time we're at each other's throats or something. _

"Need I remind you that Connie is there as well? Honestly." She wiped her hands on her jeans and sat on the newly made bed. "And for your information, it isn't Jean." She looked around the room one last time.

Mina's smile fell slightly as she shrugged. "Shame. I mean, he might not be on your mind, but you sure seem to be on his. Why else would he always be looking at you?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Nothing," Mina said as she looked away, obviously hiding a smile. "We're pretty much done here, Sasha. You can go on ahead. I can manage by myself."

Unconvinced and slightly irked at the other girl's attempt to change the topic, Sasha chucked a pillow at Mina before going out the door.

"What the hell, Sasha!"

"Love you too, Mina!" Sasha called over her shoulder with a laugh as she closed the door.

The brunette let out a sigh. _At least she didn't pry about Berthold. Word gets around fast. _

She let out another sigh as she made her way downstairs.

It'd been almost a week since the wedding, yet she still couldn't bring it in herself to stop thinking about him. When Connie pointed out that she had accidentally brought Berthold's jacket with her to the country club, he'd been on her mind since.

She'd hear a song and somehow its lyrics would lead back to him. She'd be doing her usual warm up drills or doing chores around the dorms and suddenly, the most random memory with him would visualize in her head. She'd be lying in bed and he'd be the last thing she'd think of before she drifted off to sleep only to have him as the first thing on her mind when she woke up.

He was on her mind so often, she just wished she could forget everything. Forget about how he'd pat the top of her head if he wanted to show affection. Or forget about the way the corners of his eyes crinkled when he smiled. Or how his eyes seemed to sparkle when he laughed. Or maybe even forget about the time he'd encouraged her to join that city-wide archery tournament which led her to become State Champion for three years running.

Just forget all the big things he'd done and stupid little things in between and forget about loving him altogether.

But no. Her subconscious kept betraying her. Every. Single. Time.

Every day, he'd just somehow worm his way into her thoughts and stay there. It had been far too frustrating for her every time it happened, and she had long given up trying to force him out when he'd barge his way into her mind and allowed herself to drown in bitter recollection.

The only times she didn't think about him was when she was teaching archery to her students and when she was with Connie or Jean.

Connie had always been her best friend, and naturally, he was the first to know everything. He was the first to know about her feelings for Berthold, the first (and pretty much the only) person to receive all her gushing and squealing about her moments with said boy and the first (and once again the only) one she called when Berthold told her about his proposal plan and once again on the night her…_plan _failed and ended up spending her whole afternoon with Jean.

And Jean?

She couldn't put her finger on it but somehow he was the kind of presence that distracted her. Even if his words were as blunt as her arrows were sharp (and boy they were), they just had this effect on her that made her toss all the sad and serious aside for a bit and enjoy the conversation. She had a feeling deep in her gut that maybe it was like that because it was from _him_, because the words were coming out of _his _mouth, the same gut feeling that had made her time with him at the café feel so right and had had her sleep peacefully the night of the wedding.

Or maybe it was because he would insult her on such a regular basis that her infuriation would distract her from any other thoughts and would make her think fast for a good comeback.

Whichever it was, it was a distraction that she desperately needed, and one she looked forward to everyday.

Jean had suddenly become a constant in her life, which was weird considering that she had known most of her friends and co-workers for over two years (and not to mention Connie for almost two decades) and she had only known Jean for barely two weeks.

She really didn't get how he got into the picture so fast, but either way she was thankful that he did.

With a small skip off the last step of the stairs, she made her way over to the couch in the common room to find that Jean had been sitting there, sketchpad open on his lap and pencil in hand. He was alone, she noted as she remembered everyone going straight to their rooms after dinner.

"Hey."

He looked up from his work. "Potato Girl."

Sasha groaned. "I pretty much threatened to mutilate you yet you still won't stop calling me that?"

He smirked. "It's become a habit. No stopping me now."

She rolled her eyes as she made her way to sit beside him. "So how was your day?"

He closed his sketchpad and set it beside him. "Awkward as fuck." He answered with a shake of his head, to which she snorted and chuckled. He suddenly turned to her. "You?"

She stretched and made herself comfortable on her spot before answering. "Well, you can say that I made a friend out of my newest student."

There really was no need for her to address the elephant in the room by name.

"You do realize you're teaching the girl I'm getting forcibly hitched to, right?"

Sasha scoffed. "Of course I knew. I always knew. I'd recognize anyone that blonde who isn't Armin."

He shot her a quizzical look before chuckling, and she let out a small laugh of her own.

"She thanked me, you know."

His eyes narrowed at her. "I'm pretty sure that's what all students do after every session."

"No. I mean, Krista _actually_ recognized me from the wedding."

His brows rose up to his hairline. "And she thanked you for objecting?"

She nodded and let out another laugh. "The two of you are so against it, it's almost hilarious. "

"Yeah it's gonna be like those ugly sweaters your grandma would knit you for Christmas."

Sasha cocked her head to the side. "Huh?"

"It makes you feel uncomfortable and the only reason you agreed to keep it was so that your parents wouldn't get mad at you for being insensitive." Jean supplied. "And the only time you'd show it in public is when your parents are with you so you'd look like a nice guy."

"But don't kids usually like it when their grandma makes something for them?" The brunette asked.

"Well, yeah. But it's not really all that likable when your parents shove it down your throat and make you wear it the next day."

She let out a something between a snort and a chuckle at the perfectly accurate analogy. "You really hate it with a passion, huh?"

"Do you mean the ugly sweater or the marriage? 'Coz honestly, I hate both equally."

"And the parents?"

"If you must know, I'm only doing this for my mom 'coz I hate to disappoint her. It's my dad that I loathe with enough fiery passion to keep you warm during the winter."

"Huh. There's one thing I don't get though."

"Hm?"

"Why not give it a chance? Seriously."

"Didn't I explain it to you the first time we met?"

She shook her head. "No, not that part. I mean come on, Jean. How are you _not _in love with her?"

He shot her a look. "The hell are you talking about?"

"Come on. Don't play stupid with me. Sure, she's kinda short, but she's really pretty. And she's really nice as well. I mean, you yourself called her a goddess. How are you not interested? Most guys wouldn't hesitate if they found out they'd be getting married to a girl like that."

"You're running your mouth again, Sasha." He flicked her forehead before shaking his head. "Honestly."

She pouted and lightly pressed her fingers to where he hit her. "Well? Are you gonna answer me or what?"

Jean sighed. "It's just…" he sighed again. "It's just kinda hard to explain."

"Hm. Is there someone else you like, then?" She didn't get why her heart skipped a beat when she asked.

"Not really. I had a thing for Mikasa back in high school but apart from that, nothing."

Sasha perked up in interest. "Wait. You had a crush on my roommate?"

"Well, yeah. I would follow her around like a blood hound and did all sorts of stupid things just to get her to notice me. Hell, I even joined the all the clubs she was in."

"Does the Sina Country Club count as one of them?" Sasha asked.

He shook his head. "Nah. I got over it a while back in college. Nowadays, I'm just patiently waiting for the day Eren gets his head out of his ass and finally realizes his feelings for her." Sasha nodded in agreement. Anyone with a pair of eyes can see the girl's feelings for the green-eyed boy. It was Eren who had yet to realize his own feelings for Mikasa and hers for him.

"Seriously, though. Imagine how stupid it would be if I was still pining for her until now," Jean abruptly said, effectively making Sasha drop her smile.

She felt her heart clench in her chest and let out a bitter laugh. "Yeah. Totally stupid."

Jean suddenly waved his hands frantically in front of her. "Oh god. Sorry, Sasha. I didn't mean to-"

"It's alright." She cut him off. "It's alright," she said again as she moved her line of vision to the clenched pair of hands on her lap.

It _was _totally stupid. Just what kind of girl would be stupid enough to still be in love with the same guy even after he got married? Stupid enough to think that objecting at his wedding would actually change his mind? Stupid enough to still have him on her mind everyday even until now?

Just what kind of girl would be so _stupid_ to keep hurting herself the way she was now?

"Hey, no one's rushing you to get over him that fast, Sasha."

Sasha tilted her chin up to look at him. "I had seven years to get over him, Jean." She let out a sigh. "Seven years. That's more than half a decade. A little overdue, don't you think?"

"Hey, things like that take time."

She shot him a look that said, _Are you serious? _But opted for "You don't say?" instead.

Jean raised his hands in mock innocence. "Hey, just quoting what my best friend Marco told me." He dropped his hands to his lap as soon as she dropped her look.

He suddenly chuckled. "Would you believe me if I told you it took me three years to get over Mikasa?"

She pursed her lips. "Yeah, I guess."

"See, no rush. Kind of like how I teach my students how to control their horse the first time. You obviously can't expect to do it right away. And obviously, you're gonna get hurt." At this, Sasha snorted. "Just make sure you do it at your own pace and it'll happen eventually. Okay?"

Sasha felt herself lighten and nodded with a smile. "Okay."

* * *

Jean sighed and stretched as he got himself out of bed. Seeing his roommate Thomas was still fast asleep, he walked out of the room as quietly as possible.

Upon closing the door behind him, he began to smile as memories of the night before had begun flooding in.

After giving her some well-needed advice, the two of them had spent the rest of their free time together, lounging, talking and joking the night away just as they did that day at the café. He didn't understand how conversation could flow so easily between the two of them and though he really didn't care, her laughter had now become a constant sound to his ears, even if it was a snort or a full fit of giggles.

She could at anything he mused, from some AutoCorrect typo she'd make on her phone to terrible jokes Connie would try to crack when they ate dinner.

(Who even laughs at _'What do you get when you put bread in your shoes? You get loafers!'_? Honestly.)

She even laughed at his own comebacks when he got into another squabble with Eren.

(He was being a blunt and crass asshole, not funny. That didn't stop her from falling off the couch and onto the floor in a burst of laughter a couple nights ago, though.)

Even when they first met, she had laughed at his deadpan sense of humor. Most of his dialogue involved a curse word or two yet she still chuckled lightly.

He noticed that her nose crinkled when she smiled. Her cheeks also turned pink, and after a particularly long fit of laughter, she'd always end up being breathless. And he absolutely had no idea how he managed to pick up on something as small and as insignificant as that, but his subconscious betrayed him and probably wouldn't let him forget about it soon.

(He would know; he tried.)

Her laughter reminded him of wind chimes or small bells. Light, airy and somehow, sounded the same yet sounded different every time he heard it. With the slight chance of him going insane if he heard it way too often.

In any case, possible insanity triggers aside, it still gave a weird, warm feeling inside his chest that he couldn't explain.

A weird, warm feeling that he actually kinda liked.

.

.

.

Wait.

.

.

.

_What? _

He shoved the errant thought into the deeper recesses of his mind before it could explore any further.

He definitely needed some coffee. Like right now. Before he lost any more of his sanity.

But of course, when he went down to get some, (coffee or sanity, that was what he wasn't so sure of,) the girl who had been wandering his thoughts since he woke up was also ever-so-coincidentally wandering around the kitchen as well, bending over to get something in one of the lower cupboards.

He almost jumped when she went back to an upright position and turned to him.

Her eyes were still half-closed from sleep, and there was a small dried-up trail of drool on her chin but something was different. Her hair was _down_.

The thought that her hair was always in a ponytail had never occurred to him but now... he never thought she could look so pretty with her hair out of it.

_Wait. What? Jean, get a fucking grip! _

"Good morning, Jean," she said with a drowsy smile.

"G-good morning."

_Why the hell did I stutter? _

"You're up early," he said as she made her way to the table to set a bowl and spoon along with a box of corn flakes.

"I could say the same for you." He watched as she made her way to the fridge door and grabbed a carton of milk. "But if you must know, I love getting first pick for breakfast on the weekends."

_Oh yeah. Forgot that Petra doesn't have to be on kitchen duty on Saturday and Sunday. _

"Anything good?"

"Well, the place is always stocked up nicely, so yeah, you can say that." She set the carton on the table and wandered over to the overhead cupboards.

Jean watched as she looked like she was rummaging the cabinet, but when he looked at her tip-toed feet, he chuckled.

"Need some help?"

Sasha shook her head. "I almost got it." She reached up again, almost jumping to reach for whatever it was she needed.

Jean chuckled again as he walked over to her. "What is it you need?"

She visibly deflated and pouted, but her cheeks were noticeably pink form embarrassment. "A mug."

Jean looked back up to the cabinet and reached it with ease. He handed it over to her with a smirk.

"Here ya go."

She squinted. "Yeah yeah. Thank you, Horse-face."

He didn't get why he felt something in his chest jump in place as her fingers brushed against his when he handed her the mug. Especially after she had just insulted him.

_What the hell, Jean? Get a grip!_

"Do you wanna join me?" Sasha suddenly said.

Jean managed a nod. "Yeah, sure." He grabbed a mug for himself and took out a bowl and a spoon from the lower cupboards as well.

"Got any plans for the day?" She asked as she sat down. "Oh, and I started the coffee maker if you don't mind. It's not as good as Petra's, but it's still pretty decent if I do say so myself." She nodded to the coffee pot on the counter.

The equestrian instructor shook his head as he followed after her. "Nothing much. I'll probably just slack off for the day or finish up my sketches or something." He took a seat beside her and grabbed the box of cereal upon seeing she had already filled her bowl with corn flakes and milk. He poured some of the box's contents in his bowl before setting it down and turning to her. "You?"

She swallowed a mouthful of cereal before answering. "I got an Injustice: Gods Among Us tournament and with Connie, Eren and the rest of the guys. Gotta defend my title, ya know?" She helped her spoon to another serving as he poured some milk into his bowl. "And after that, we're just gonna have a movie marathon with everyone else. Wanna join?"

"Yeah, sure."

The coffee maker beeped and both made a move to get up. "Allow me. You already started the pot, Sasha." The girl nodded back to him and sat back down. "Thanks, Jean." She said with a smile. Somehow, the sun's rays had decided to pour in through the windows and cast all around her. With that lighting and her hair down with that smile of hers, she almost looked…ethereal.

Jean nodded back and swallowed a lump he hadn't known had formed in his throat before getting back to the coffee pot. He had his back turned to her as he asked, "What movies are you planning to watch?"

"Well, Eren's been insisting we watch Pacific Rim and that we make a drinking game out of it or something, so we got that on the list. Hanji got a couple horror movies as well so we'll be watching those, too." Jean nodded as he got the pot from the maker and headed back to the table. He poured her cup before filling his and sat himself down.

Sasha suddenly clapped her hands. "Oh, and I think Thomas brought along his copy of Inception, so we'll definitely be watching that."

He nodded again and took a sip from his coffee. His eyes widened.

_Holy fuck, this is good. _

"So, do you like it?"

"Yeah. What did you put in this brew?"

"A little something called love."

Jean squinted at her. She grinned. "Kidding. I put a few drops of vanilla in there and a dash of cinnamon."

The boy nodded as he took another sip. _Nothing like Petra's, but still pretty damn good. _

Jean opted to look away from her only to see Armin already leaving his room. Their gazes met for a split second before Armin looked away and quickened his pace outside.

Jean immediately turned back to Sasha. "I have to do something for a bit. Think you'll be alright by yourself?"

"Yeah sure. Don't take too long, though. I might finish your food for you."

He rolled his eyes and returned the grin she gave him before standing up to catch up to Armin.

When he was already outside, Jean called out his name.

"Armin!"

Jean wasn't sure if Armin didn't hear him or just plain ignored him and tried again. "Armin!"

Realizing the blond was doing the latter, Jean sprinted towards him and heaved in a sigh. "Armin, can you just listen to me for a sec?"

Armin turned to him with wide eyes full of panic and hands raised up as if in proving his innocence. "I didn't mean to hit on Krista, I swear! Please don't trample me with all the horses in the stables!" he squeaked out.

Jean just stared in confusion before shaking his head. "What? Why the hell would I do that? Look, Armin I-"

The blond immediately raised a hand and plastered on a smile that Jean knew was faked. "No, Jean. No need to explain yourself to me. I'm really sorry if I caused any confusion and to be honest, I'm happy for the both of you." He swallowed and shifted to walk away. "Tell Krista I said sorry as well and that I wish her the best."

Jean sighed and blurted out. "It's an arranged marriage, Armin."

Armin stopped in his tracks and turned back to Jean so fast his hair whooshed around to his face. "What?"

"You heard me. I'm only getting forced to marry her to save our family business. Didn't Eren tell you about it?"

He watched as the blond froze, then suddenly flushed to a very noticeable shade of red. _He seriously forgot? And to think the kid was a genius. _

"Oh my god. I'm such an idiot." The blond muttered.

Jean only shook his head. "Nah, don't you worry about it." He walked over closer to him with his fist raised up. "So we're good?"

Armin nodded and bumped his own fist to his before sighing. "God. I'm really gonna have to apologize to her as well."

"You're damn right you do. But a piece of advice?" He took Armin's nod as a sign to continue. "If I were you, I'd make the most out of what little time I have with her before it's too late. Two and a half months is actually pretty short if you think about it."

Armin nodded again, but slowly. Silence lapsed for a few seconds until the blond asked.

"Hey, Jean?"

"Hmm?"

"I could say the same for you with Sasha." And with that, the blond had walked in the direction of the main building. Jean's eyes widened as he felt his ears burn.

"What do you mean by that? Oi! Armin!"

Jean swore he heard the shorter boy laugh as he gave a back-handed wave. "You'll realize it soon enough!"

Before Jean could pry any further, Armin had already disappeared into the main building leaving him with his ears a noticeable shade of red.

_Just what the hell is he talking about?_

With a shake of his head, he headed back to the lodging.

Sasha had already finished her coffee when he had returned to the dining room. "About time you got back here. Your coffee was getting cold, so I had to drink it. You don't mind do you?"

He managed a nod and walked over to the counter to get the coffee pot.

"You alright? What was it you had to Armin about?"

"Remember how I met you and took you out to coffee the day of my wedding?" He asked as he walked towards the table and refilled his mug.

Sasha nodded. "Yeah, of course."

Jean let out a sigh as he set the pot on the table. "I forgot to tell you about it last night but… let's just say Krista actually went through the same thing. But with Armin."

The brunette's jaw dropped. "Seriously? Does Armin even know about the engagement?"

"He did. Just last night, actually. I had to clear things with him before he holds a grudge against me or worse, sinks into depression."

Sasha nodded in understanding. "He must really like her, huh? I mean, when he first led Krista to her session with me, I'd never seen him smile so much. Seriously, they acted like they were best friends or something, but I didn't expect Armin's feelings to be _that _deep."

"Me neither. I've never seen Krista so happy either. Before she freaked out when she saw me that day, I'd never _seen_ her smile so wide, even with the whole goddess thing going around with her." He took a seat and finished his now cold bowl of cereal.

"So what did you tell Armin?"

"Told him to make a move before it was too late. Knowing the iron-hand future-monster-in-law has, he better make the most of the last two and a half months Krista has before she's totally unavailable," he said through a mouthful of cereal. He swallowed and took a gulp from the glass of water Sasha had been nice enough to get for him while he was gone.

Sasha wrinkled her nose. "Didn't your mom ever tell you not to talk with your mouth full?" She rolled her eyes. "Anyways, what did Armin say?"

_I could say the same for you with Sasha. _

Jean almost choked on his drink and promptly swallowed it as he set the glass back on the table.

He cleared his throat and hoped she didn't notice his internal panic.

"Nothing in particular."

* * *

Sasha sighed as she waxed her bowstring for the second time that month. Usually, she would just wax it every other week, but with the latest addition to her schedule her bow had been overused. Finished and happy with her handiwork, she hung her bow back on its hooks above her bed and closed the canister of beeswax before wiping her hands on her jeans.

They had just finished watching the last of the movies for their marathon a little over half an hour ago, leaving them plenty of time to clean up after the empty bags of chips they had strewn all over the floor (and not to mention the puddle of soda Connie, Eren and Hanji had snorted while watching The Interview). She smiled fondly at how everyone had a great time with each other. Even Jean had joined along and shared a few laughs after trying his hand at challenging Sasha of her title with the video game tournament (she had won, of course. She was absolutely merciless when using Harley Quinn). She snuck a glance at the wall clock as she set the beeswax on her nightstand.

The briefing was about to start any minute now and she shrugged on a jacket she grabbed from her drawer before going out the door.

She was met with a certain buzz-cut who was leaning on the banister of the second floor. "You ready?" he asked upon seeing her.

Sasha nodded. Connie narrowed his eyes at her. "You're wearing it again, Sash."

She looked down at the gray jacket she had on and looked back up at her best friend with a guilty smile followed by a sheepish laugh.

"Heh. My bad."

The buzz-cut only rolled his eyes and ruffled her hair. "Sure."

She winced at the sarcasm in his tone, but said nothing. "Anyways, I need to use the bathroom. You go on ahead."

Sasha managed a nod as he left. Once his body was out of sight, Sasha let out a sigh.

_Nothing wrong with keeping it, right? I mean, sure, I do look like a girl keeping her ex-boyfriend's jacket, but he was never my boyfriend anyway, so maybe it doesn't count? _

Sasha realized that she was still standing in place and snuck a glance over the banister and at the ground floor.

Realizing that the briefing was going to start at any second, she continued her pace down the stairs and into the common room. She glanced at the crowd for a split second and spotted a head of ash-brown hair.

With an easy smile, she stepped up to Jean and stood beside him. "Hey. What did I miss?"

He gave her a half-smile and nodded to where everyone was facing. She noticed three people making their way up front. From where she was standing she could hear Levi groan. "Jaeger, I swear to God I'll put you on bathroom duty for the rest of your life if you don't settle down."

Sasha was about to laugh, but as soon as the three had arrived up front and faced the crowd, she could've sworn her blood stopped flowing.

Right in front of her were three people she hadn't expected (or even wanted) to see.

"Alright, everyone. I'd like you to extend a welcome to the new additions to our staff. Meet our new instructors, Reiner Braun, Annie Leonhart and Berthold Hoover."

* * *

**A/N: As promised, Chapter 4! I cannot begin to excuse how late this is. Thank you though, to everyone and anyone who waited patiently for this. Special thanks to my friends Kei and Sab and not to mention hewhowatchestheworldburn for beta reading this chapter. If your into RWBY and Code Geass, make sure to check out his stuff! Now I was thinking about this for a while but I've killed you enough with the semi hiatus. So here's a sneak peak for Chapter 5!**

* * *

"Dude how much more dense can you get?"

"Seriously a brick wall can pick up the signs better than you!"

"Yeah, your overall density rivals that of Osmium!"

"...You're not really helping, Armin."

.

.

.

"I'm telling you to let it go, Sasha."

"I'm not singing _Frozen_ songs, Jean."

.

.

.

"Do you know what iris flowers symbolize?"

When the girl only shook her head he took it as a sign to continue.

"Most of the time they're used as congratulatory gifts for weddings. Other times they're given for good luck. But most of all they stand for a promise. A promise for companionship and...love. Their true meaning though is..." the boy looked away and flushed a few shades of red.

"_I'm willing to risk everything for love._"

* * *

**Yeah, I suck at previews. Hopefully I'll get this done in a month or so. Thanks again to everyone who followed and favorited! Make sure to drop a review if you have the time! **

**till next time (^o^)V **

**edgeofmyemotions**


	6. Iris

Chapter 5: Iris

* * *

Disclaimer: I own nothing but this poorly written story. A/N at the bottom for anyone interested.

* * *

_When everything's made to be broken_

_I just want you to know who I am_

-_Iris_, Goo-Goo Dolls

* * *

_Jean felt his lips purse before he set his mug down on the table. Outside the sunlight had dulled from its afternoon glow to warm rays of sunset that streamed through the café's windows._

_"Hey Sasha?"_

_She swallowed a mouthful of baked potato (her third, amazingly enough) before turning to him. "Yeah?"_

_"What do you plan to do now?"_

_When he saw her shift in her seat he immediately took back what he said._

_"Wait, on second thought, you don't have to answer that; that was a little too straightforward, even for me."_

_"No no it's fine." She said as she waved her hand to dismiss the idea. Sasha let out a sigh, shoulders rising and dropping from the weight of her breath. "I guess I'll just have to work on getting over the whole ordeal or something." She dropped her hand to her lap. "Probably with a shit ton of comfort food along the way, too."_

_"And if you see him again?" Jean internally winced at the question as soon as it escaped his mouth but he couldn't help it._

_He was worried._

_"I'll just have to act like usual, then. Assuming that I don't run away and cry like a teenage girl as soon as I see him, at least."_

_Jean cocked up a brow. "You don't seem like the crying type to me."_

_She suddenly laughs, and the brow only raises even more. "Oh believe me, you have no idea. I can get_ _really_…emotional."

_His face shows nothing short of disbelief. "Well you seem pretty fine right now. You know, with the whole Wedding Crash Fail and screaming at a public place and all."_

_Instead of looking offended or hurt, Sasha gave him a look that said, '_Really?_' before the corners of her mouth slowly formed up into a smile._

_If Jean had been paying attention to himself instead of her he would've felt his chest do a funny thing at it._

_"You know what…" She started._

_He only raises a brow as he smiles back. "Hmm?"_

_"Yeah. I guess you're right."_

* * *

Sasha wished she could've joined in on the collective greeting that followed after the new instructors had been introduced.

Maybe even smiled along with the others as they welcomed the trio.

Something.

Anything.

Yet the only thing Sasha registered was the sinking feeling in her stomach and how her heart had seemingly dropped along with it.

The rest of the briefing had been a blur to her. The only thing she remembered from it was her heartbeat pulsating in her ears and Jean's worried and steady gaze on her the entire time. She willed herself to close her eyes.

_Please stop looking at me like that. Please stop looking like you're sorry for me._

When she opened her eyes, the crowd in front of her had already begun to disperse, signaling the end of the briefing. Sasha was about to follow suit (most likely to flee to her room and hide there for the rest of the night or maybe even forever) when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

She slowly looked up to meet its owner's gaze.

"What do you want, Jean?" she asked, internally wincing as her voice came out sounding too sharp yet too broken all at once.

"Are you alright?" He asked. His voice had hushed to a rough whisper and had his gaze been any stronger, he might as well have bore holes into Sasha's form.

Sasha automatically forced the corners of her mouth upwards. "Why wouldn't I be alright?"

He narrowed his eyes at her. "Don't play stupid with me."

Forget having holes torn through her body.

Sasha might as well have combust into flames under the weight of his gaze.

They held their glance for an untold amount of time until they heard the sound of footsteps coming toward them. The two immediately tore their gazes away from the other, the idea of gossip amongst their coworkers suddenly coming to both of their minds.

But despite this, Jean had only loosened his grip on her shoulder and hadn't dared removed it, silently telling her that their conversation wasn't over yet.

"I'm fine." The brunette finally said as she gently pried his hand off her, almost immediately regretting the action as soon as she saw the dejected look on his face. Sasha briefly patted a hand to his shoulder, somehow her way of returning his previous action, and willed herself to maintain the smile on her face.

"I'm being honest, Jean. I'm okay."

Without even bothering to spare him a second glance, she turned to walk away, the smile dropping as soon as her back was facing him.

_I'm sorry, Jean._

Sasha let out a sigh as she navigated her way past her fellow co-workers and to the stairs.

Her foot had planted itself on the first step of the stairs.

It only took one more step.

One.

One more step before she was finally able to flee the area and yet a voice stops her in her tracks.

The very same voice she had been intending to avoid hearing in the first place.

"Sasha?"

She slowly turned to the voice and plastered on another smile.

"Oh. Hey Berthold!"

She stepped down and held out her hand for a handshake only to freeze when his hand completely ignored it with his other and enveloped her in a hug.

"It's great to see you, Sasha. I didn't see you at the wedding, though?" He said as he pulled away, a smile still on his face.

_The very same smile I fell in love with..._

Sasha only faked a laugh and hoped it didn't come out sounding like a bitter chuckle. "Sorry about that. Wasn't feeling well that day, and I couldn't afford to show up sick at your wedding." She said weakly before feigning another grin. "Besides, if I were there I would've finished the buffet table before the other guests could have even gotten in line!"

Berthold chuckled, a sound that made Sasha's heart flutter and crash inside her chest all at once as he gently placed his hand on top of her head.

"Don't be too hard on yourself, Sasha. It wouldn't have been the same without you." He said as he patted her crown, messing up a few strands of hair in the process.

_Please stop. Please._

She continued to force the corners of her mouth upwards as he removed his hand from her head, fighting the urge to wince as she caught sight of the gold band on his ring finger.

"Hey, isn't that my jacket?" Berthold suddenly asked, swapping glances between her face and the article of clothing on her upper body.

Sasha could swear on her life that she felt her heart stop beating. "I umm…"

"Well if it isn't our little Merida herself!" a much louder masculine voice boomed from behind Berthold. Reiner walked over to Sasha and gave her a hug as well.

"Good to see you too, Reiner."

The most honest thing she said since the briefing started. She squeezed him back and laughed for real when he lifted her off her feet. When he set her down she immediately pouted. "You should really stop showing off how big and strong you are, Reiner." She said as she playfully whacked his chest with the back of her hand.

"Can't help it Sash, just really glad to see you here."

Sasha smiled, and this time she didn't have to force herself to.

As much as her heart was practically left in ruins inside of her ribcage, Reiner had always been a big brother to her and one of her closest friends, even after they graduated from college. Seeing him here was a definitely pleasant surprise.

And if she had to be brutally honest, Sasha was extremely glad when Reiner showed up.

There was no way in hell she would've been able to last another second with Berthold alone.

* * *

Jean only watched as Sasha continued to converse with the two men he can only dub to be _titans_. The two towered over her so easily and Jean was certain that they did the same to him.

He had been so preoccupied in watching the three's exchange that he failed to notice Connie standing beside him.

"I'm pretty sure Sasha told you all about him when you were at that café with her, right?"

Jean nodded. "Yeah she di- wait how the hell do you know?" he asked, turning to him.

The buzz-cut gestured to himself with both hands as if gesturing the obvious. "Umm? Best friend?"

"Oh. Right."

Connie dropped his hands with a heavy exhale. "Think she's alright?" He asks, turning back to the trio. Jean decided to follow suit.

"No." The equestrian instructor automatically answered.

"Think she's gonna _be_ alright?"

Jean let out a sigh. "Well, I _hope_ she will."

Connie suddenly turned to him, prompting the taller boy to do the same.

"You better help her with that, Jean."

The look he gives him was nothing short of confused. "Why me? Shouldn't _you_ be doing that, being her best friend and all?"

Connie only narrowed his eyes at him. "Of course I'll being doing that as well." He let out another sigh and ran his hand over his shaven scalp. "She just needs more people there for her, ya know? As far as I'm concerned, the only people who actually know about her situation are you, me and Mikasa, and as much as I trust her to give Sasha all that girl-to-girl comfort that I know neither of us can, I'm sure as hell that it won't be enough."

Jean heaved a heavy exhale as well. "I don't really think I'm cut out for that, man."

And he was being honest.

It's only been two weeks since he met her and then suddenly her best friend recruits him to help her feel better about being in the same room with the very guy whose wedding she originally wanted to sabotage?

_Really, Connie?_

Much to Jean's surprise, the buzz-cut only let out a scoff. "Believe me when I say you're _more_ than qualified." He nodded over to the where Sasha stood, Jean's eyes following suit once more and locking on her form.

She was nodding to the two in front of her before they promptly left her behind. Almost automatically after they had turned away, the smile on her face fell, and Jean felt something inside of him clench painfully.

The next words that came out of Connie's mouth effectively made him freeze.

"She needs you, Jean."

Did she, really?

He knew for damn sure that she was strong. Sasha wasn't like other girls. She faced her problems head on, and had guts that most guys can only dream of having.

_And yet…_

Right now she was anything but that. He couldn't see it, but he could just feel that her heart was breaking on the inside, as if the pain in her chest had cloned itself to jump and resonate into his.

_Almost as if I could read her better than anyone else._

Jean shook the thought out of his mind before he closed his eyes, letting out another sigh. When he opened them he immediately turned to Connie.

"Alright."

Petra's voice suddenly echoed from the kitchen.

"Alright everyone, it's time for dinner!"

The two boys gave each other a nod before heading into the dining room with the others.

"Yo, Jean!"

Eren suddenly called, hand immediately clapping onto the instructor's shoulder. Jean spared Connie a glance.

_You go on ahead._

When the other boy nodded and continued his pace, Jean immediately turned to Eren with a scowl. "What do you want, Jaeger?"

"You remember Annie, don't you?" the doctor said, gesturing to the blonde behind him.

_Wait…_

Eren supplied for him before he was able to respond. "You know, Annie Leonhart? The girl you tried to ask for prom only to find out she was going with Armin-"

"That's enough out of you, Eren." Armin said hastily, face red from either his effort of rushing to the doctor or from the sheer embarrassment of his high school love life. Mikasa wasn't very far behind him either.

Jean turned to Annie, if only out of courtesy. "So how have you been lately?"

"Good." She said with a short nod. "We should probably get a seat now." She said, nodding again but this time directing it to the table in front of them.

Jean could only nod back as he absently dragged his feet to the closest unoccupied chair, just a few seats away from where Sasha was.

Now Jean had always known that coincidences were a part of life.

Running into a high school batch mate was normal. Ending up working the same place as a distant acquaintance did was perfectly fine as well, though not as frequent an occurrence.

But if you put together the fact that said acquaintance was someone who accidentally attempted (and succeeded) to object your arranged marriage, and that said high school batch mate was the bride at the very wedding she originally intended to sabotage, you can't help but find it _strange_.

There were just too many coincidences going on at once that Jean couldn't help but think that the universe was plotting against the both of them or something.

It also didn't help that the Annie Sasha talked about back in that café all those days ago was actually Annie _Leonhart_, the girl who terrified the male population to submission back in high school and the very same girl that, he indeed, tried asking to Senior Prom only to find out she was going with _Armin_ of all people.

(Now _that_ was another story altogether, one he really didn't have the mind or patience to tell.)

What Jean found the strangest, though, wasn't the fact that Berthold decided to work _here_ of all places, nor the fact that the guy was married to someone he had known back in high school.

The obvious middle finger that the universe was giving Sasha at that moment wasn't the most screwed up thing Jean acknowledged that night.

It was the simple observation that Sasha acted the same way she always did the entire duration of their meal.

Almost as if she wasn't the least bit affected by Berthold's presence at the table, and that Jean had only imagined everything he witnessed when she was talking to the raven-haired man.

Yes, she did speak and join in with the conversation at the table.

And yes, she even let out a laugh or two when someone cracked a joke.

It almost seemed like she was her normal self.

_Almost_ because there was still something off that Jean had sensed.

Something that he might have overlooked that he couldn't quite put his finger on.

"So Berthold, Reiner, Annie," Hanji started, referring to the new instructors. The three in question turned to the supervisor almost in unison.

"Yes…Hanji, right?" Reiner asked in place for the three of them.

The bespectacled brunette nodded before continuing. "What do you think of the club so far?"

Suddenly all the other staff members turned to their conversation, perking up in interest.

"Well," Reiner started, obviously the trio's spokesperson as the other two seemed like the quiet types. "At first I thought, _Damn this place is in the middle of nowhere_." He chuckled alongside everyone around him.

"Seriously, how do you people manage being so far from the city? Anyways, soon as we arrived though, all I could think was, _Damn this place is huge_. It being in the middle of nowhere made a little more sense. It's beautiful out here, though. Everyone's pretty nice around here as well." He said, nodding to his new coworkers with a smile. He spared a glance to Berthold, probably his way of encouraging his friend to speak up as well.

"Yeah. It's nice and quiet. It also really helped having some familiar faces around."

"Familiar faces?" Thomas asked, and Jean suddenly felt the urge to kick his teeth in.

Berthold nodded to two occupants at the table. "Connie and Sasha. Reiner and I went to high school with them. College as well." He said with a smile. "I don't really remember any of you telling me where you worked, though. Only that you guys were instructors. Seeing you here was a nice surprise."

Everyone suddenly turned to the two. Connie only shrugged. "Didn't expect seeing you guys here, either, ya know. But yeah, it's a nice thought to be hanging out with you guys again."

Sasha only smiled. "Same here."

When Annie gave out her own answer after her husband gave her an encouraging look, Jean couldn't bring it in himself to be a decent person and listen.

The only thing he was able to focus on was Sasha as she listened in with interest, as if the very sight of the blonde didn't torture her in the slightest.

Reiner's voice suddenly sounded, and Jean figured he must've told a joke of sorts. Everyone's sudden burst of laughter made the equestrian instructor tear his gaze away from the brunette, internally reminding himself that there was a difference between looking at someone in concern and directly staring at them like a creep.

From there, the conversation had diverged to a topic Jean didn't even bother paying much attention to, mainly because he was still trying to piece out just what it was the he was forgetting to check.

It was only when everyone had left and when he helped Hannah and the others clear the table that he realized what exactly was wrong.

The meal had already ended, and it was only then that he remembered his chore duties for the day, and promptly grabbed a basin Mylius had handed him for him to put empty plates into.

_No chance of me figuring it out, then. Maybe I was just over-thinking?_

Jean let out a sigh as he neared the seat he knew was Sasha's.

Only for what felt like a rock lodge itself in his windpipe as he soon as he saw the plate in front of him.

.

.

.

Her plate was still full.

.

.

.

The entire duration of the meal she didn't eat at all.

Jean swallowed the new lump in his throat as he took the plate into his hands and dropped it into the basin with the rest with an audible crash.

His coworkers suddenly turned to him, and Jean could only lift a hand. "Sorry." He muttered before turning back to the basin.

Jean spared another glance at what had been Sasha's plate with a grimace.

The fact that she hadn't touched her food was more than enough proof that she was anything but her normal self.

That and no matter how stupid it was or how desperate it seemed, he had to do something to make sure it doesn't happen again.

Something.

Anything.

* * *

"Jean."

The said boy only groaned and buried his face deeper into his pillow at the voice.

"Jean." The voice came again.

By now Jean was already half awake and the equestrian coach only squeezed his eyes tighter in an attempt to ignore the voice and fall back asleep.

Yet despite being half asleep Jean felt the presence looming over him and the sound of heavy breathing against his ears.

The sound resembled the kind of breathing you would hear coming out of a gas mask, and was loud enough to stir him fully awake.

Opening his eyes was the biggest mistake Jean could've ever made.

The first thing he saw when he sat up was the glowing red eyes of a horse's head mounted on top of a human body.

"Jean, I am your father!" it said, followed by a whinny.

Now Jean knew who was under that mask. He knew that lab coat anywhere. That stupid voice was pretty easy to recognize even if it was muffled under a costume mask.

But despite knowing, and the fact that he was a man, Jean found himself letting out a high-pitched scream.

"**AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!**"

The reverse-centaur laughed and pulled off its head, revealing Eren's wide and mad grin. The doctor only laughed as Jean threw a pillow at him.

"**WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK, JAEGER?!"**

Jean winced as he heard the faint sounds of rustling and voices from the rooms beside his.

_Dammit, now all the guys are awake._

He turned to the clock that sat on the nightstand beside him.

_**4:01 am**_

_Great, just great_, Jean grumbled. He heard some rustling beside him and turned to look at Thomas who was still beginning to stir awake.

Jean suddenly felt tapping on his foot, and turned to look at Eren who only pressed a finger to his lips as he took a few steps closer to Thomas's bed.

"Hey Thomas. Thomas." Eren whispered. Jean didn't notice that the doctor still had the horse mask in his hand.

When Thomas had begun to open his eyes Eren tossed the horse head to lie beside the other boy's head, snout touching his own nose.

"Huh? What's going o- _**AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!**_"

Jean only slapped a palm to his face as Eren exploded in laughter. Then suddenly he heard shuffling from the ceiling above him and slapped the other palm to his face.

_Great, now all the girls will be awake._

As if on cue, the door burst open about a minute later, revealing a crowd of majority of the staff members of the Sina Country Club, Levi standing at the very front and holding a flashlight.

_Is this supposed to be the staff or the fucking Scooby Doo gang?_

Levi's voice was calm and steady as he spoke, but sounded a bit too loud in the room.

"Jaeger, Kirstein, Wagner, now's the time you explain to me exactly just what the hell happened. Everyone said they heard two girls screaming and swore it all came from this room. Now unless one or two or _all three_ of you shitheads actually have hidden intentions with our female guests, I suggest you all explain yourselves." He shined the flashlight directly into their faces similar to how a gang leader would interrogate one of his members. "_Now_."

Jean grumbled and jumped out of his bed to grab the horse head from beside Thomas to hold it up for everyone to see.

"Does _this_ explain anything?!"

Everyone's reaction when Levi shined the flashlight onto it was completely priceless.

Most of the girls (and even some of the guys) let out a small yelp of surprise, Hannah and Petra actually let out high-pitched shrieks until they were shut up by Franz and Auro, respectively, and even Levi himself jumped a little when he caught sight of the horse head grasped by the mane, its eyes still glowing an eerie red.

"Jesus fuck, what the hell is that?!"

Jean wildly gestured back and forth between the horse head and the crowd in front of him as he spoke. "See! All of you here would've screamed _your_ heads off if fucking _Eren_ over here woke you up with this on his face at FOUR IN THE GODDAMN MORNING!" He punctuated his rant by throwing the mask over to Eren who only kept the mischief in his grin as he caught it.

The doctor shrugged.

"And I would've gotten away with it too, if it weren't for you meddling kids!" Eren said, altering his voice to sound forty or so years older. He only chuckled when everyone groaned and then shrugged again. "And also, how was I supposed to know that Jean would scream the way he did?"

Jean suddenly threw his hand up in the air as he sat himself back on the bed. "How the _fuck_ do you actually expect someone to not shit themselves after seeing that thing? Honestly, just how- wait why does that thing look like Buchwald?"

Jean immediately snapped his gaze to the doctor holding the horse head that suddenly strongly resembled his favorite horse in the stables.

When Eren only smiled and shrugged a third time, Jean leapt up to his feet and out of the room, making his way through the crowd at the door and sprinting his way from the dorms all the way to the stables in his pajamas, fearing that Eren may or may not have beheaded his prized horse.

Everyone heard his voice boom from the courtyard.

"Buchwald, my baby, I'm coming for you!"

Eren along with a few others exploded in laughter. Suddenly the doctor shifted his eyes to Connie who was holding up his smart phone, most likely recording the events as they unfolded. .

"Yo Con, did you get all that?"

"Yep." He said with a grin as but he didn't bother lowering the camera.

"Why are you even recording this anyways?" Samuel asked from beside him.

"I dunno, thought we had a ghost. Thought I could sell the footage for a rip-off Paranormal Activity or something." He said, and then added in a quieter voice, "Or maybe as blackmail to use for the wedding video montage."

Levi turned to him sharply, making the buzz-cut jump. "What was that?"

"Nothing, sir."

Hanji suddenly walked over and examined the horse head.

"Hey Eren, how much for this guy?"

The doctor suddenly furrowed his brows and turned stoic. "You'll have to make me an offer I can't refuse." He said in a low and slow Italian accent along with passive hand gestures.

Some snorted, others groaned again at the apparent Don Corleone impression. Hanji let out a small chuckle as she took the horse head from Eren. "Nice try Eren, but you sound more constipated than you do Mafioso. Now come on, where'd you get this? And how much?"

"Twenty bucks off eBay. Randomly typed in 'Sarah Jessica Parker Vader' on Google and this was the first thing that came out."

"Cool." The bespectacled brunette said as she held up the mask up to her face for closer inspection. "Look at the detail on this thing, Levi." She said as she held it up closer to the manager's face for him to see.

Levi swatted it away with a grunt. "Get that thing away from me." He turned to the crowd behind him. "And all of you. Coz of Shitty Godfather over here none of you are going back to sleep. Anyone who gets caught dozing off gets bathroom duty on Bonfire Night. Dismissed."

Everyone groaned but complied, a few muttering about coffee and breakfast as they made their way to the common room, signaling the end of their unconventional staff briefing.

Eren made the move to exit the room once the doorway was clear but not before sparing Thomas a glance.

"You're not getting up, Thomas?"

The other boy slowly shook his head. "I think I actually wet myself, man."

Eren only chuckled and left the room, barely hearing the other boy yell as he shut the door behind him.

"Godammit, Eren!"

* * *

By the time Jean got back from the stables (and not to mention had made sure that all the horses still had their heads attached to their bodies,) everyone was either in the kitchen making or eating breakfast or in the common room doing their usual shenanigans, all of them with a mug of coffee and doing their best not to fall back to sleep.

In his dazed once-over of the image before him, Jean accidentally bumped into Sasha.

"Ah. Sorry man." When he tilted his chin down to get a better look at her, he had to bite his tongue to stop himself from commenting on her appearance.

Her hair was out of its ponytail the same way he saw her yesterday morning, and a little messed up from where she laid on it. He honestly would've had a replay of his breath hitching in his throat if it weren't for the current state of her face.

There were bags under her eyes, but compared to the others who were pretty much sleep deprived themselves, she was a total wreck. The darkness under her eyes was more pronounced, the white of her eyes was rimmed with red and hell, she even looked a shade or two paler.

_Damn, is she really _that_ sensitive to sleep deprivation?_

"It's alright, Jean."

_Wait, did I say that out loud? Oh wait, I bumped into her. Right._

Jean nodded to the people around him. "Is it finals week here or something? Why isn't anyone going back to sleep?"

Sasha shook her head. "Levi set out bathroom duty for anyone who dozes off."

The boy blinked. "Oh. Sorry we woke you up." He said sheepishly as he rubbed the back of his neck.

Suddenly Sasha gave him a small smile, and a small inkling feeling in Jean's gut told him it wasn't completely genuine. "It's alright. I didn't really get any sleep last night anyways."

Despite the obvious bitter choice of words, she said it as if she was talking about the weather. The tone of her voice sounded too casual.

Almost as if she was faking an air of nonchalance to cover up for something. Jean was about to ask if she was alright but Sasha suddenly muttered something he couldn't quite comprehend and turned to leave, leaving him to stare after her in worry.

_Quit running away, goddammit._

Jean kept his gaze on her back for a few more moments, ears straining to listen to the conversation she was having with Mina.

Something about dress shopping? He wasn't so sure.

With a sigh he tore his gaze away.

_Eavesdropping wouldn't do shit, Jean._

With one final glance at the brunette he made his way to the kitchen, muttering apologies to anyone who may have thrown him a sleep deprivation-ridden death glare as he walked past.

(It didn't really have much of an effect though. Eye bags definitely helped in minimizing the death glare factor.)

He helped himself to a bowl of cornflakes and a mug of coffee before sitting himself down beside Mikasa who, surprisingly, was by herself at the table.

"Not with Eren and Armin?" Jean asked, trying to initiate conversation. The raven turned to him and shook her head. "Eren's back in his office, told me he wanted to be alone for a bit while he works on his paper."

Jean nodded, recalling the fact that Eren had been given a grant to continue on a research paper about God-knows-what. Whatever it was about, though, it involved constantly pulling pranks on his coworkers as Jean had come to find out.

"And Armin?" he asked again before helping himself to a spoonful of cereal.

"He said he had to take care of something. He didn't really say what it was, though."

Jean smirked as soon as he swallowed his food, knowing full well that that _something_ involved a certain blonde girl. Suddenly Jean let the smirk drop as he turned to Mikasa in all seriousness.

"How was Sasha last night? In your room, I mean?" he asked. He assumed that Connie had already briefed her on the situation, and that he wouldn't have to ask of it out loud where everyone can hear him.

Mikasa only frowned. "She didn't speak at all as soon as we got in. She just changed out of her clothes then went to bed. She didn't even bother doing anything for free period."

Jean's mouth formed into a frown that mirrored Mikasa's.

She turned in early but didn't sleep at all the entire night?

"When did she tell you about the entire Berthold equation?" he asked, making sure to lower the volume of his voice upon mentioning the new instructor's name.

"She told me about him a couple times last season. By the way she was talking about him she seemed really hurt about the whole thing. She actually cried the first time she did."

A brow raised on Jean's end. "Oh?"

She didn't even come close to crying when they talked about it in that café. Huh.

Mikasa nodded. "Yeah. It's safe to say that she's really sensitive about it."

"Yet she didn't cry last night?"

She shook her head this time. "I didn't hear anything that said otherwise." She set her spoon down onto her plate. "You're not the only one who's worried, Jean. Connie and I will be looking out for her and will be there for her if she needs us, and I know you will be as well." She said, getting up.

"But for now we should give her some space, even for just a little while. I'm sure she'll talk to us when she's ready." She added, placing her hand and Jean's shoulder. The boy only nodded as she turned to leave.

_When she's ready, huh?_ Jean mused as he absently helped himself to another spoonful of cereal.

Suddenly not feeling very hungry anymore, and he let his spoon drop into his bowl with a soft clatter.

_When the hell would that be, then?_

* * *

_WHIRRRRR_

Mikasa only watched as her can of coffee dropped out of the main lobby's vending machine with a loud clonk. She then proceeded to bend over to get her new drink through the compartment. Pleased to find her it rather warm, Mikasa straightened up and headed to the west wing of the main building.

The next thing she sees makes her stop in her tracks altogether.

She had originally intended to head over to the infirmary to remind Eren to get breakfast. Apparently the doctor had beaten her to it as he opened the door and left the clinic himself.

And by his luck (and her chagrin,) he runs into a certain blonde Muay Thai instructor.

And then immediately strikes conversation with her.

He didn't even notice her when she was literally just _a few feet away_.

It's been a decade since Annie and Eren have last seen each other yet why can't she just- why do they have to be so- why does Eren have to be such a- ughhhh.

Mikasa shook her head in hopes to prevent any other jealousy-fueled thoughts of violence race through her mind.

She let out a sigh. She hadn't felt like this since high school.

Why? Just why?

"Uhh Mikasa? You alright?"

The nurse only turned to the source of the voice (Connie, she had come to notice) with a poker face."Peachy. Why do you ask?"

The instructor only reluctantly pointed at her hand. "Your drink."

Mikasa looked down to see that the can had completely been crushed in her grip, its brown contents spilling all over her hand and the floor.

"Oh." Was all that the nurse was able to say.

"Will you look at that."

* * *

Krista had been on edge since last night.

After Armin had stormed off last night, she had been so close to crying that she had woken up the next morning with tear stains on her cheeks. Thankfully it was Sunday, meaning that her mother was still fast asleep in the bed beside hers, leaving Krista with enough time to rush to the bathroom and splash some cold water on her face.

And because it was Sunday, she was given a break from her usual sessions, leaving her with nothing to do to shake off the anxious feeling in her chest.

So when her phone vibrated on her nightstand just a little after she had showered and eaten breakfast, Krista almost fallen out of bed out of excitement and nervousness after seeing the message flash on her phone.

_**[Think you can come by the garden behind the main building?]**_

Krista could've sworn her fingers were shaking as she typed in her reply.

_**{Yeah. I think I know where that is.}**_

Nothing stopped the sinking feeling in her stomach as she waited for his reply.

_**[Good. See you then.]**_

Krista didn't feel the need to answer and set down her phone with a sigh.

_Why the sudden urgency?_

"Mother?" she asked, turning to the woman who was on her phone in the bed beside hers.

"Yes, darling?" she asked, not even bothering to look up from her screen.

"Is it alright with you if I roam around for a bit? I haven't really been able to see most of the club grounds."

_Wow, I really suck at lying._

"Yes, yes." Her mother replied, even using her free hand to wave her off almost in a shoo motion. "Just be back before lunch."

"Yes, Mother." Krista said as she stood up and tucked her phone into her jeans, trying her best to not let her excitement seep through her voice. "I'll see you later!" she called before shutting the hotel room door behind her.

She arrived at the garden with a small stumble in her step as her heart pounded louder and louder against her ears.

Despite knowing the location, this was the first time that Krista had arrived in this garden. The view she had through one of the smaller windows in the lobby gave out the wrong expectations for the place.

First of all it was a lot bigger than she would have expected; a rectangular area of cobblestone in the back of the main building and was a lot more hidden as well with tall walls of green that hid the area away from prying eyes of staff members and patrons. Dozens of beds and bushes with various breeds of flowers littered the area, no doubt the same ones she had seen on the tables of the café and restaurant, and from the corner of her eye she caught a glimpse of what seemed to be a pair of benches.

Krista whipped her neck to look for Armin, not doubting that he was there already.

At last she finds him at the very end of garden, his back turned to her.

Somehow seeing him like that reminded her of all the fairy tale picture books she read as a child, how the princess would meet her true love in the most perfect conditions and scenery. Despite shaking the errant thought away, she felt her breathing stop upon seeing him.

Reluctantly, Krista took a step toward him.

Armin obviously must've heard her coming; he had chosen to turn around at that exact moment.

Krista was both relieved and confused to see that he was smiling at her instead of frowning or giving her some other expression on his face.

"Hey."

The girl managed to respond albeit a little slower than what one would consider normal. "Hey."

"Glad to see you here." He gives her a small smile. And then it drops as soon as it appears. "Well actually I was the one who asked you to come here but umm…uh…aw crap uhhh…"

Despite herself, Krista found herself giggling.

_Since when did I find his stammering so endearing?_

"Just what are you trying to say, Armin?"

The other blond sighed and let his shoulders slump.

"I just want you to know that Jean told me everything. And that I'm really, _really_ sorry for not hearing you out first."

Krista nodded, not completely sure how to reply.

"I also called you here to give you this. A peace offering of sorts." He reached into one of the bushes beside him and pulled out a bouquet of purple flowers.

Krista found herself giggling again.

Honestly. This boy was too adorable sometimes.

_Wait, what?_

Luckily his voice stopped her before she could have a mental panic attack.

"They're all hyacinths. The one in the middle is an iris though." He said as he thrust the bunch of flowers toward her.

The girl took it into her hands and pressed the flowers up to her nose to inhale the sweet scent. It wasn't over powering, but it wasn't too mild either, and if Krista focused hard enough she could smell a faint hint of coffee on the petals.

"Do you know what irises symbolize?"

When she looked back up and cocked her head to the side Armin took it as a sign to answer his own question.

"Most of the time they're used as congratulatory gifts for weddings. Other times they're given for good luck."

Krista nodded, still not sure on exactly what his point was. Why was he giving her a crash course on the language of flowers?

"But most of all…they stand for a promise. A promise for companionship and friendship and…love." Her eyes widened. Armin only turned away from her as he flushed a few shades of red. _"'I'm willing to risk everything for love'_. That's their true meaning." He garnered in a breath before meeting Krista's eyes, midnight meeting with baby blue as the girl found herself having trouble breathing.

The next words he said effectively banished all the air in her lungs.

"I like you, Krista. A lot, actually, and when I finally realized it all the songs and YA novels suddenly started to make sense." He let out a soft chuckle, a sound that made her heart flutter madly against her ribcage, and when combined with how her breathing was pretty much nonexistent at the moment made her feel lightheaded. She barely managed to register the next thing he said.

"So now, with whatever time you have left before you leave, I want you to spend as much of it as you can with me." She noticed how he swallowed a lump in his throat before continuing. "That is, if you want it to be me you spend it with."

The look on his face was enough to make her heart melt. He was smiling at her, but there was a certain glint in his eyes. It almost looked like…fear.

In that moment Krista realized that whatever answers she would give him would determine whether or not she was going to accept his feelings.

.

.

.

But if she were to be completely frank…

.

.

.

The answer was already obvious.

Tears welling up in her eyes, she smiled and nodded.

A look of pure relief washed over Armin's features. "Thank God."

It was then that Krista realized that they had unconsciously moved closer to each other and were merely inches away.

Almost as if reading her mind, Armin himself inched closer to her. He began leaning in, and he accidentally bumped his forehead lightly on hers as his gaze flickered back and forth between her lips and her eyes. By now the two of them had turned a shade of red but neither of them made a move to look away. Krista was about to let out a small yelp at the sudden contact but was silenced when he hesitantly wrapped an arm around her waist to pull her even closer and all thoughts were erased when she felt his lips on hers.

Her eyes widened for a split second and she blinked a few times before closing her eyes and dropping the bouquet to wrap her arms around her neck.

This wasn't her first kiss, and judging how he knew what he was doing with his lips she was sure that this wasn't his first either.

Yet somehow it felt like the first all over again, from the warmth that coursed through her entire being to the fireworks that seemingly danced across her sub-conscience.

It was in moments like this when everything, all her thoughts, her worries and even reality itself was just thrown out the window. It was now when everything she ever felt just exploded into one moment. Right now he was kissing her and she was kissing him back. Right now he was all hers. Right now nothing else mattered.

.

.

.

Now was the only thing on her mind.

.

.

.

And that was because now, without a doubt, was absolutely _perfect_.

* * *

Eren grumbled as he continued to tend to tend to the injury on Connie's arm with an ice pack. He tapped the buzz-cut's shoulder and pointed to the cold compress with his free hand, a silent message to the shorter boy to hold it in place for him while he continued to inspect the rest of Connie's body. The doctor snuck a glance at the other boy's swollen cheek and sighed.

"Mikasa? Can you hand me some bandages?"

She took a minute too long to respond.

Was she spacing out? At a time like this?

Stifling another grumble, Eren asked again. "Mikasa? Bandages?"

"We just ran out, Eren." The nurse said from her seat by the curtain that separated the beds from the main office of the infirmary. And she was being blunter than usual, Eren noticed.

What was up with that?

The doctor only turned to her incredulously. "Ran out? How the hell did we just _run out_ of bandages?! This is the clinic for Christ's sake!"

"Well does _this_ answer your question?" she asked as she stood up and pulled away the curtain, revealing and gesturing to two the hospital beds, each holding a male staff member practically mummified in bandages.

And she was being sarcastic now as well? What the hell got into her?

Eren felt an eyebrow twitch as he turned his attention to Connie. "Just what the hell did you guys yourselves into?!"

**-ONE HOUR EARLIER-**

"A fight?" Reiner asked, a confused look on both his and Berthold's faces as two of his new co-workers proposed a challenge. They had only opted to go into the gym to fill up their lockers and check out the facilities and equipment they'll be using, probably with a light work-out session sneaked in between. Neither of the two even thought that they'd be making use of the mat as soon as they saw it.

And especially not with their new colleagues instead of their clients.

"Not like that man, more like a spar between two masters?" a blonde Reiner remembered to be Thomas supplied with an expectant smile.

"Alright, fine. One thing though." Reiner pauses to swap his glance to Connie who all but continued with his regular stretches. "You as well, Connie?"

The buzz-cut nodded as he began rolling his shoulders. "Yeah. You and I never really got the chance back in uni, ya know?"

Gaining interest, Reiner stares Connie down.

"Kick-boxing, right?"

He stops half way through his exercise to narrow his eyes at the taller man.

"Tae Kwan Do, _muchacho."_

"And these two?" Reiner asked, directing his attention to Mylius and Thomas.

"Saiko Style."

"Echani."

The Krav Maga instructor nodded. "Never heard of those before. Better show us what you got, then."

Connie sighed, making a mental note to whack Mylius and Thomas upside the head for naming fighting styles from _Street Fighter_ and_ Star Wars_ as if they even practiced them.

(And maybe hit Thomas twice as hard, just for good measure since he woke just about the entire dorm with his girly screams. Does he even know that the entire amount of coffee that the staff drank in the first hour alone was more than enough to kill a herd of grizzly bears? Seriously.)

"I'll go in first." The buzz-cut said before getting on the rubber mat.

Reiner smiled. "Alrighty then. Challenge accepted."

"You're on, Braun."

"What does the winner get out of this?" the Krav Maga instructor asked as he got on the mat as well, assuming a stance while Connie did the same.

"Bragging rights, mostly."

For some extremely fucked up and steroid-infused reason, bragging rights were more than enough to have the two go all out on each other on the mat with only their hand bindings as their protective gear as soon as the bell rang.

Krav Maga, the Israeli martial of kneeing someone in the groin until submission; developed from years of war, it was the most battle oriented martial art of this decade, suited for people of all ages despite its dangerous nature.

It was made even more dangerous when used by an oversized orangutan named Reiner, whose ape-like physique only made the martial art stronger and much more terrifying.

Tae Kwon Do, a John Smith in the field martial arts, solely focused on strikes from hands and feet with kicks as it backbone element. It seemed absolutely harmless when practiced by the average white-belter eight-year-old, but when applied by a black belter who started at that same age, it's anything but harmless.

"Too slow there, Connie."

It was a powerful kick Connie launched as an opening attack; it was an even more powerful block on Reiner's part as his arm barely showed signs of the impact.

With a flick of his elbow, Reiner sent Connie's leg back onto the mat, the latter more pumped up than ever.

"Didn't think you'd end up as an instructor to be honest." Connie said, catching a breath before attacking again, a punch this time.

"Could say the same for you." Reiner replied, not hesitating to slap away Connie's strike by the wrist.

From then on, their spar had taken on a new level, each throwing in their own attack as the other found a way to counter or block it. Connie was the most mobile on the mat, sending powerful kicks and punches whenever he can and even throwing an acrobatic trick every once in a while, immediately retaliating whenever his opponent blocked. Reiner, on the other hand, was comparable to a brick wall, almost completely steadfast in his place as he deflected Connie's attacks and turning into something comparable to a wrecking ball every time he were the one to strike.

Despite the apparent intensity of their spar, though, anyone watching wouldn't have been able to deny it.

Reiner and Connie both had a shit-eating grin on their face as they conversed both physically and verbally.

They were having the time of their lives, catching up with each other in the most violent way possible.

"Why here, though? Of all the places you can go?"

"Everybody's gotta make money some way." Connie answered along with a punch. "Plus this place is pretty far from the city, nice and quiet, ya know? That and Sasha's pretty convincing." He grunted as he blocked a knee to the stomach. "You? What brought you here?"

"Same as you." The other instructor replied, making a move to jab his opponent in the chest with an elbow. It proved to be effective, sending Connie back a foot or two even with his blocking efforts.

"Is this about the money or the peace and quiet?" the buzz-cut asked once he regained his footing, stance at the ready for attack or defense.

When Reiner didn't reply Connie cocked a brow.

"So this _is_ about Sasha then, huh? Thought you already got over that one-"

He wasn't even able to finish as Reiner somehow managed to cross what little distance was between them and launch another attack in the blink of an eye. Whether it was an elbow or knee that attacked him, Connie didn't know. What he did know however, was that whatever it was that attacked him delivered the final blow, setting him off-guard and careening backwards until he fell on his back to the floor.

_Guess he still has that crush on her_, Connie thought as he set his weight on his elbows, face red both from mirth and the impact he sustained against the mat.

_The things he doesn't know._

"Just kidding, man." He said as soon as Reiner neared him. Connie immediately took the other instructor's outstretched hand, Reiner's way of reassuring him that they were indeed just goofing off.

The buzz-cut was taken by surprise when Reiner pulled him up to his feet only to drag him close enough to whisper in his ear. "You didn't tell anyone, did you? Not even Bertl knows."

Connie only shook his head. "Nah."

He really doesn't know a thing.

"Alright, who's next?" Reiner asked as soon as Connie got off the mat, the latter absently rubbing on the new contusions on his arm.

Mylius stepped onto the mat with a stagger courtesy of Thomas's shove and awkwardly raised his fists in his best attempt at a stance.

On that day, the record for fastest knock out in Sina History was one minute and four seconds.

"Hey Bertl, wanna take this one?" Reiner asked as Thomas stepped onto the mat, the latter of the two looking visibly pale enough to actually blend in with the gym's white walls.

The raven-haired man only nodded slowly as he made sure to tighten the bindings on his knuckles before stepping on the mat.

"Yeah sure, I don't mind."

The record for fastest knock-out was soon succeeded by a whopping fifty-seven seconds.

**-END FLASHBACK-**

"So you're telling me that the three of you tried to take on the new instructors for a spar…" Eren started, turning to them with a look that would make most children flinch and nod guiltily_ 'cause Daddy was mad at them._

Connie, Mylius and Thomas were no exception to this, the buzz-cut nodding a lot more vigorously than he should.

_Damn, we really should have thought about this first. I keep forgetting that Eren's a licensed doctor. He's probably pissed at us getting injured a day before operations-_

"WITHOUT INVITING ME?"

.

.

.

Mikasa pressed a palm to her face with a silent groan.

.

.

.

Two out of the three stooges immediately plastered on a grin.

.

.

.

Connie only sweat-dropped as Eren, Thomas and Mylius started talking like excited school girls over fighting Reiner and Berthold.

_Never fucking mind._

* * *

Reiner stretched the kinks in his back and let the joints release air with a 'pop' as he closed his new locker.

"Well that was one hell of a workout. Don't you think so, Bertl?"

His raven-haired friend closed his locker as well and gave him a questioning glance. "Don't you think you overdid it a bit, Reiner?"

The blond man only shrugged. "Well it's been a while since I last sparred. I'm a little rusty so I'm pretty sure that they'll be fine for work tomorrow.

Berthold let out a sigh. "Whatever you say." He took out a towel from his bag and draped it around his neck. "Anyways, it's lunch. Annie's waiting outside the gym. You coming with?"

Reiner shook his head. "Nah. I'm gonna go for a walk, probably wait out until the dining room isn't so full. Have a bit of a look around too, while I'm at it. And besides," he walked out of the locker room with a teasing grin. "I wouldn't want to be a third wheel to you two again. Or a cock-block."

The blond only laugh as his best friend flushed. He barely heard his cry when he shut the door.

"R-Reiner!"

It was just too easy to tease him sometimes. His reactions were completely priceless as well.

Reiner let out another laugh as he exited the gym and entered the main lobby, making sure to tell Annie of her husband's whereabouts as he passed her by.

He waved at a few of his new coworkers before taking a look at the villa through the wide windows of the main building.

He had to admit, the place really was nice. At least ten hectares worth of green surrounded by even more hectares of forest definitely was a nice break from the city. Reiner remembered going on a cross-country trip the summer after college with Berthold, yet somehow all the places they've visited couldn't quite compare. It was more serene here, peaceful despite his hectic coworkers.

And speaking of coworkers…Berthold was right. Meeting Connie and Sasha here was great. He'll admit it, he did sort of maybe kinda possibly have a crush on Sasha when they were in college.

Reiner could've sworn he was over it. Maybe it was just the initial shock of Connie's recounting of his little crush that made him hesitate on the mat?

.

.

.

Maybe, yeah?

.

.

.

No?

.

.

.

He's not completely sure. Oh well.

Reiner shifted his gaze to look at the people around him, from the pair working at the reception to the staff goofing off at the café near the back.

And that was when he saw her.

Fair skinned and blue-eyed, the girl had long blonde hair and soft features to her face that reminded him of the paintings of angels he remembered seeing in history books back when he was in high school. It also didn't help that the sunlight from the bay window decided to hit her at that moment, the rays casting all around her and making her look like the gods themselves had created and sent her to this earth to fill its inhabitant's hearts with the grace of goodness and all that stuff goddesses were supposed to do.

(And in that moment Reiner was suddenly a hundred percent sure of…whatever he had to figure out. Is he even thinking straight right now?)

She was laughing as she texted into her phone, probably at a joke or a picture. Whichever it was, it made her look lovely beyond known words.

(Well at least, any words in his not-so extensive vocabulary.)

Reiner failed to notice that her heavenly glow was just light from an external source, and had himself believe that the girl in front of him was without a doubt, an angel.

And in his awestruck gazing Reiner hadn't realized that her form was growing larger and larger until it collided with his chest.

"Oof!" Came the angel's voice.

Reiner immediately took a step back and slid his glance downwards.

"Oh, sorry Miss." He said, every fiber in his being forcing his voice not to stutter as he took a closer look at her.

She was so much more radiant up close.

"No, it's alright. I was the one who wasn't looking." She said with a small smile.

Reiner now found himself to believe in love at first sight.

.

.

.

In all his life never had he thought that such a thing was possible.

.

.

.

But now, he was definitely a believer.

.

.

.

"Umm…I really ought to go now." The girl suddenly said.

Reiner mentally slapped himself for just standing there like an idiot. "Oh, right. Guess I'll see you around Miss…?" he trailed, hoping to at least know her name.

"Krista. My name's Krista." She supplied, smile still in place.

_Krista. What a beautiful name for a goddess._

"Nice to meet you, Krista, I'm Reiner." He said quickly.

"Reiner. Right. Got that. Anyways, I'll be seeing you then, Reiner!" she said as she moved past him and into the elevators.

Reiner didn't miss a beat and immediately turned around, hoping to catch her one last time before the elevator doors closed in front of her.

He gave her a wave. She gave him a small wave in return seconds before the door closed in front of her.

And on that day, Reiner had already chosen his future wife.

* * *

**_[You there?]_**

**_{Yeah, just got held up.}_**

**_[Care to share what happened.]_**

**_{To make it short, I'm pretty sure I bumped into a weirdo.}_**

* * *

Sasha let out a sigh as she watched the sky above her turn from brilliant blue to a distinct shade of gold.

Not really wanting to stay inside her dorm where a certain pair of people would most likely be, the instructor decided to busy herself by keeping maintenance on some of the club's bows under the shade of the tree she had made a companion out of since she started working at the club.

_These would be the last two for the day_, she thought as she reopened the canister of beeswax she had brought along with her and started to apply some of it to one of the bow's strings. Lucky enough she had decided to perform maintenance on them by the pair, leaving most of the newly waxed bows inside their respective racks already.

Brown eyes keenly focused on strands of tough fiber as fingers deftly ran wax over them with practiced ease. It was usually only when Sasha did things like this that her mind didn't run in circles, and in fact she even found the act kind of relaxing. After a few minutes of mindlessly running waxed fingers against the bowstrings, Sasha closed the canister of wax and pocketed it before standing up and taking a bow in each hand and making her way toward the archery shack located not too far from where she stood.

Now that she was out of her act of inner peace, nothing stopped a baritone voice from pushing its way through her mind as she walked.

_It's great to see you, Sasha._

The girl shook her head to free her attention of it.

_Come on Sasha_, she thought. Get a grip._ He's a married man now. You have to respect that_.

She arrived at the shack with a small stumble in her step. It was a very humble abode; a simple four-wall building no bigger in square area than her bedroom with a single door up front.

One that Sasha completely forgot to leave open after taking her last round of bows to maintain.

_Ugh,_ She groaned. _That's what I get for not focusing enough._

But before Sasha was able to set one of the bows on the ground to free a hand, another hand beat her to it and opened the door for her. The girl only looked up at the hand's owner in both delight and weariness.

"Berthold?"

He gives her a smile, and Sasha could only curse her heart for skipping a beat at it.

_Dammit, why now?_

"Thought you could use a hand?"

Sasha shook her head and hoped it didn't look too frantic.

"No no. I'm good. Thanks anyways though." She said, putting up a smile for good measure. "What brings you out here?"

Berthold only smiled again. "Well, I finished checking out the facilities and I had originally intended to head over to the dorm but then Annie and I decided to take a look around the rest of the grounds before lunch." He said, nodding to where the blonde stood no more than a few feet behind them.

Sasha followed his gaze only to look back up at his face. She noted the way he watched her with nothing short of reverence; the sparkle of warmth that reflected in his eyes and the faint smile of fondness that graced his lips as he stared. She turned her glance sideways and noticed Annie standing by the tree she had been not too long ago, her hand propped against the bark and eyes completely focused on the trunk as if studying it.

The brunette looked back at the man before her and had to stifle a heavy sigh.

_He looks...happy._

His voice broke her train of thought from moving any further. "Well since you can pretty much handle yourself, I'll be off now." He placed his hand atop her head and patted it.

It took all of Sasha's will to not break his gaze.

"I'll see you later." He said with a smile before removing his hand and heading toward Annie.

She would've whined at the loss had she not have any more self control.

So instead Sasha watched as he approached his…_wife_.

Even thinking of the word was enough to make her internally flinch.

Berthold gave her a wave as he reached her. Annie only looked up from the tree and walked toward him. From where Sasha stood she saw that they were talking, another one of those hushed conversations she remembered they always had back in college.

Sasha had to shake her head again to dismiss the memories as they came flooding in.

Then Annie nods, and Berthold reaches out one of his hands to her. She only nods again as she entwines her fingers in his and lightly pulls him to her side as they head toward the lodging.

The height difference between the two could've been completely laughable.

But instead Sasha couldn't bring it in herself to do anything else but run inside the shack behind her. No longer caring for maintenance of club property, Sasha dropped everything she was holding onto the table inside and closed the door with a loud slam. Her legs gave way under her. This left her on the floor with her back leaning against the hardwood of the door. She brought a hand to her mouth and used whatever was left of her will not to cry.

_Not here_, she told herself. _Not now_.

If she was going to be like this on the first day, how much more the entire week?

The entire season?

For the rest of her life, even?

* * *

"Find something interesting?" Berthold asked his new wife (darn, he'll never get used to calling her that) as they neared the lodging.

Annie only gave him a confused glance. Berthold nodded back to the area behind him.

"You were looking at that tree pretty intensely. Find anything?"

The blonde shook her head. "Not really. There was a small piece of metal in the bark though."

"Like an arrowhead?"

Annie smiled and nodded this time. "Yeah." She said, pulling apart their hands as they neared the entrance. Berthold understood her blatant dislike for PDA and proceeded to open the door for her to which she nodded to gratefully.

"Something like that." She said as they entered the common room.

* * *

Just a good distance away from the employee lodging, Jean jumped at the sound of a slamming door as he made his way towards the dorm. He stopped in his tracks and gazed at the small structure situated by the archery field in curiosity.

_Had that always been there?_

Letting his curiosity get the best of him, Jean took a step closer towards it, paying no heed to the fact that his supervisor would be looking for him at this time.

He was barely even five feet away from the shack's door when it suddenly burst open.

This didn't stop Jean in his tracks, though.

He found himself still walking forward to where Sasha stood, taking in the drastic change in her features compared to when he saw her that morning, like the strands of brown hair that seemed to escape the elastic confines of her ponytail and the way her shoulders rose up and down so fast as if she were hyperventilating.

Gone was the smile she had on since Sunday morning, and instead her lips were tightened to a straight line on her face and swollen as if she had been biting on them too much.

_What the hell happened to her?_

"Jean?"

The said boy suddenly froze, realizing he was still walking toward her and halted in his pace.

Instincts (and not to mention awkwardness) taking over, Jean turned a 180 and headed back towards the lodging, feet moving faster and faster under him as he went along.

Had he left a second later Jean would've noticed the look on Sasha's face turn from…well whatever that was to confusion.

The equestrian instructor could only keep moving, stopping only when he reached the door to his room inside the lodging to rip it open and close it with a near audible slam.

Jean smacked the back of his head against the door as he tried to regain his breath.

_You finally get to catch her alone for the entire day and what do you do? You run like a little bitch, that's what._

Jean just stood there for what felt like hours until he finally steadied his breathing and straightened himself before opening the door.

Thomas meets him just outside of it, hand raised as if he was intending to knock. "Hey man." He said, lowering his fist.

"Hey." Jean said as he shut the door behind him.

"So Petra told me to call you for lunch so…" Thomas trailed off, obviously uncomfortable.

"Oh okay." Was all equestrian instructor managed to say as they set out the hall.

"You alright, bro?" Thomas asked as they entered the common room.

Jean gave his roommate a glance but let it drift off to somewhere further behind him.

Particularly to a certain brunette who was conversing with her coworkers in the kitchen. She was smiling, and again Jean was left to question the realness of the sight he had just witnessed a few moments ago. Suddenly she meets his glance from across the room.

And the smile drops.

Almost as if in panic.

The boy only raised his hand in a pathetic attempt at a wave. The girl only gave him another smile that he knew wasn't the least bit genuine before turning back to her conversation.

Jean looked back to Thomas with a heavy sigh. "Yeah." He said as he headed over to the dining hall.

"Nothing's wrong at all."

* * *

Mikasa only kept her eyes trained on Eren, hand steadily grasping his forearm, almost in support. The blinds on the dorm storage room door weren't the most reliable light source but even in the dark she could still see the green of his eyes flashing dangerously bright.

She let out a breathy sigh.

"Eren, are you really sure we should be doing this now?" he started to move so she clung onto his arm tighter, blunt nails biting into his skin. "We're bound to get in trouble."

It was a little past seven in the morning. By then everyone was in the common room helping themselves to some coffee and breakfast before the usual schedule started.

By now the others would be looking for them.

So why now?

And _here_?

"Shh." The doctor whispered before giving her a small smile; a sight that made her heart melt over completely every time. "We're just gonna have to be quiet, remember?"

He's giving her that look again._ The-I'm-Up-to-No-Good-But-I-Can-Still-Get-Away-With-It_ look. The same one she had accustomed herself to seeing ever since they were in high school.

Maybe even ever since they were children, to be honest.

"You trust me, don't you?" he says, a low rumble that sent shivers up her spine.

If she doesn't get herself a backbone soon that look was going to cause her death.

Or in this moment, someone else's.

With a sigh she lets go of his arm, and immediately Eren reaches over for the hidden air horn on the shelf in one hand and a zip-tie in his pocket with the other.

He fits the zip-tie over the bottle's handle, tightening it just enough to fit snuggly. He turns to her with another smile.

"On the count of three, okay?"

Mikasa sighs but relents and nods anyways.

The things I do for this man.

"Ready?"

"That would imply I have a choice in this." Mikasa grumbled lightly.

The doctor perked up with enthusiasm.

"That's the spirit! Now, are you ready?"

The girl nodded again, this time reaching for the door knob, ready to open and sprint all the way out the lodging as they discussed last night.

Eren gives her another one of those blindingly bright smiles before counting down.

"One. Two. Three!"

In a flash, Mikasa rips open the door and runs in the direction of the dorm's exit, Eren not too far behind as he tightens the zip-tie over the air horn, startling everyone out of their breakfast as the horn lets out a massive honk.

And then the commotion starts.

Even in the seconds it took the pair to reach the dorm's front yard they already heard a handful of screams, a glass or two shatter and not to mention the sound of three, four or maybe even all members of the staff falling over themselves as they tried to stop the air horn from emitting any more noise.

Eren suddenly turns to her, grin still in place. "Got all that?"

Mikasa nodded. "Yeah." She did her best to recall anything and everything she saw as soon as Eren launched his make-shift sound grenade.

_Connie immediately went into a defensive stance, so did Reiner, Berthold and Annie. Mina and few other girls let out a yelp. Levi almost dropped the mug he was holding but only stayed perfectly calm while everyone else started to panic._

The nurse nodded again. "I'll type it up later."

"Great job. Thank you soooo much." Eren said, immediately pulling her into a hug. "You're the best, Mika." He whispered into her hair.

The girl found enough sense in her to hug him back.

And in that moment, Mikasa was sure.

Eren was going to cause her death a lot sooner than the rest of his test subjects.

* * *

Jean lightly tapped the heel of his palm into his ear, a vain attempt to get the internal ringing noise from the air-horn out of his head, and as he looked around he saw everyone else doing the same.

"Anyone else having that high-pitched noise digging into their skulls?" Connie asked in place of him. Was he shouting? Jean couldn't tell.

The thing took a full three minutes to shut up, and all their efforts to stop it didn't really work. At all. The zip-tie was just around it too tightly. They couldn't exactly leave the lodging, partially because they might spike up suspicion amongst their patrons and partially because they'd just make an even bigger mess outside. They couldn't afford to throw it outside the dorm either, otherwise they might disrupt operations at the main building.

So instead they just tossed it into the storeroom and ignored the noise as they waited for it to die out as they went on with their mornings, everyone letting out cries of relief as soon as it did.

Apparently now they had some other noise to deal with, though.

"I'm pretty sure it's called acouasm." Armin supplied.

"What?" Connie asked in a volume way too loud to be considered his house voice.

"Acouasm!" Armin replied in the same volume.

"A coat has him? A coat has who? Who is this evil coat?"

"ACOUASM!" the blonde practically screeched, making the unfortunate number of people who surrounded him flinch in place.

Jean couldn't help his own outburst. "BOTH OF YOU JUST SHUT UP!"

The pair turned to him with in unison. "WHAT?"

"Guys." Sasha suddenly cut into two of them. She was obviously just using her regular voice; otherwise Jean wouldn't have been barely able to hear her.

"Everyone else is having a headache as is. Let's not add to that, okay?" she said, making sure spare both Connie and Armin a glance.

The pair in front of her sighed but nonetheless nodded. "We should probably just finish cleaning up. We're up in fifteen." Armin said, and luckily enough everyone managed to hear him as they all started to get back to the table and finish their meals.

Jean was making his way back to the dining room when he decided to spare Sasha a look. That's when he overheard it.

He thanked every deity he knew that the ringing in his ears had toned down enough for him to.

"You're already done eating, Sash?" he heard Connie say.

The girl nodded. "Yeah. Finished right before Eren launched the sound grenade. I'll just head up to the field now." She said before turning and leaving.

There it was again. That feeling in Jean's gut that kept convincing him that something was horribly off. It kept gnawing at him the entire time he ate, and as soon as he was finished with breakfast he decided to give in to it.

If no one had done the dishes yet then there should be twenty-three plates in the sink, Jean thought.

He made sure everyone left before checking it himself, his heart unexpectedly beating much louder and slower than it should as he counted the number of plates.

.

.

.

_Twenty-two._

.

.

.

He felt the lump grow in his throat.

"Something wrong, Jean?" Franz suddenly asked from behind him.

The instructor shook his head. "Nothing." He sunk his teeth into his lower lip. "Actually there is something you can help me with."

The other boy's brows rose. "Okay. What's up?"

"It's just…you're on dish duty for this morning, right?"

Franz nodded. "Yeah. Why? You wanna swap shifts?"

Jean shook his head. "No, nothing like that. It's just…" he hesitated before continuing. "No one's allowed to do their own dishes right? When someone's already assigned to do everyone else's?"

Franz nodded again. "Yeah." He stopped mid-nod as his eyes narrowed a bit in worry. "You alright, man? You look a little pale."

Jean waved his hand as he began to walk away, hoping that the other boy didn't notice the stagger in his step. "Yeah, not to worry."

"You sure nothing's wrong? I could tell Levi and Eren for you if you're not feeling well." Franz continued to egg on.

Jean would have thought the gesture was really nice of him.

He really would have.

If only he didn't feel like throwing up at that moment then he would've thanked the guy.

"No, I'm good." Jean said as he got out of the kitchen and into the common room.

"Nothing's wrong at all." He muttered under his breath as he left the lodging.

The stagger he had was still present in his footing and he didn't really bother to correct himself. Only after being a good distance from the lodging did he realize that his feet were leading him towards Sasha at the archery field, and not towards the stables.

Jean caught sight of her form postured in her shooting stance, legs apart and back straight, brown eyes completely focused on the target board in front of her. He watched as she drew her arrow with practiced ease. She held the arrow there for a moment.

Two.

Three.

He released a breath he didn't know he was holding when she released.

From where he stood Jean saw that the arrow didn't even come close to the center, and instead impaled one of the outer circles. Sasha stepped forward to retrieve the arrow, and it even brought more worry to Jean when he saw how she got it out of the target board with ease.

He distinctly remembered that just last week it would take her a few tries to even get the damn thing to budge.

She's not completely focused.

At all.

Suddenly Sasha turned around, and by impulse Jean continued and quickened his pace to the equestrian field, hoping and praying that she didn't recognize him from that distance.

Tough luck. She did.

Jean only kept his line of sight ahead and heaved out a sigh.

_Nothing's wrong at all_, his earlier thought echoed as he reached the stable's wooden gates.

In that moment, Jean knew.

Those four simple words made up the biggest lie of the century.

* * *

Armin only shot Krista a look as she laughed away. Did she really find Eren's air-horn prank from yesterday that amusing?

"It's not funny, Krista." He said with a defeated sigh.

"I can't help it! It's absolutely priceless!" she said before giggling again. "To think that he goes around the lobby with a lab coat and all, and then he just turns out to be no better than a high school prankster!"

Armin only rolled his eyes and lifted a hand to play with the ends of her hair. Ever since that…rendezvous they had yesterday, Armin had taken it upon himself to continue escorting Krista to her first class in the morning and afternoon. Not that he still needed to anyways, but anything was worth a few stolen moments with her, even with their even more frequent text messaging.

Armin smiled. "What about you?" he asked her.

She only turned to him with her head cocked to the side. "What do you mean?"

"What were _you_ like in high school?"

Krista pursed her lips as if in thought. "Well, I was an honor student."

"I expect no less from you."

The smile on Armin's face only grew wider. There was no denying the receding blush that developed on her face at the compliment. Krista only stuttered and looked away.

"I wasn't at the top of the list but I was consistently on it. And…I was very well into clubs. I joined a lot, like the book club and the tennis team. I think it was around that time that I got myself into anime and other fandoms."

Armin nodded before she spoke again.

"What about you?"

"Huh? What about me?"

"Any high school ex-girlfriends I should know of?"

Now it was Armin's turn to blush. "No, I wasn't really the dating type back then you know, since I was mostly with Eren and Mikasa…"

Krista didn't really seem to buy it and faked a nod. "Uh-huh."

The boy only let his shoulders slump in defeat. He can never really get past this girl. "Alright, alright. I did ask a girl out to senior prom. Annie. She was pretty quiet for the most part but she was pretty cool."

"And this Annie, are you two still in touch?"

Armin nodded. "Actually she just started working here as an instructor in the Martial Arts department, so yeah. I know for a fact that she's married now though, after seeing her application form. She hasn't changed her last name so I'm betting not everyone knows. To be honest I didn't expect her to see her again married, but then again we never really hit it off after prom, so…" Armin stopped in his tracks. "I'm rambling now, aren't I?"

The girl only giggled again and shook her head. "Not really. Don't worry, I find it kind of cute."

The blush that had previously stained Armin's cheeks decided to return in full force. "Oh I see." He snuck a glance at his clipboard, an obvious attempt to hide his face.

He took a glimpse at her schedule and sighed.

"Five more days."

This brought a delicate furrow to Krista's brows. "Until what?"

"Until you leave the club."

That made her stop in her pace altogether, leaving them a few short meters from the archery field.

"Oh."

Armin noticed how her eyes widened by a noticeable fraction, probably from the apparent realization. He reached over and tilted her chin up with a finger, prompting her to focus her gaze back on him. "Hey." He said gently, a soft rumble of sorts. He lowered his hand with a smile. "No need to worry about that now, alright?"

Krista only lowered her head with a sad smile. "I know but…time just went by so fast and so slowly all at once." She tilted her chin up to face him, watery baby blues meeting his. "Do you know what I mean?"

"Kind of." Armin reached over to lightly pinch her nose. "Last time I checked, you only get that kind of feeling when you're in love."

Krista only puffed her cheeks as they started to tint red. There was no denying the smile on her face, either. "Hey."

Armin couldn't help but smile at her reaction. She was nothing short of adorable. He released her nose with a short chuckle.

The girl shot him a look.

(He would've considered it a glare but come on. It was way too cute to be taken seriously.)

When he chuckled again she immediately continued her pace with loud footsteps.

(Even the way she was storming away was adorable. She was almost kind of like a baby penguin.)

"Oh come on," Armin said as he followed right after her. She still gives him that look and he makes sure to look her straight in the eyes as he spoke.

"You should know I get the feeling perfectly as well."

"The one with being unable to comprehend time accurately?"

Armin only gave her another smile reached down to entwine his fingers with hers and shook his head.

"The one about being in love."

* * *

Sasha eyed the plate across from her with gusto.

The steak Petra had whipped up for lunch was beyond tantalizing, and when paired with the mashed potatoes the barista had made along with it and the vegetables she already had on her plate…

The girl had to bite her lip as her stomach grumbled. She took a look around her to make sure that no one was watching. Slowly, if not deftly, Sasha reached over to the serving knife and fork by the plate to cut up her serving of meat.

She looked up and around again, this time making her once-over a little more thorough.

By her mistake she made it a little too thorough, and her eyes ended up landing on a certain pair of people.

Annie was being…well _Annie,_ if there was another way to put it, with the way she silently ate her meal. Beside her, Berthold was quietly chatting with the Reiner and a few other coworkers.

And as she watched him, Sasha couldn't help but notice the way he would throw his wife the occasional glance and secret smile as he ate.

Sasha felt her grip on the cutlery loosen.

With another bite of her lip she set the knife and fork down and finished what little serving of vegetables she had served herself with earlier and ignored how her stomach growled in protest. .

She suddenly wasn't feeling very hungry anyways.

* * *

_Alright, you got this_, Reiner thought as he made his way into the Main Lobby before lunch period ended.

By his luck, Krista was on her phone and sitting on one of the lobby's couches.

And she was alone.

Reiner had originally planned to talk to her again yesterday but Eren's little…surprise (if there was any better way to put it) had left his ears ringing for the whole day.

There was no way he was going to take his chances and miss even a single word that would come out of her mouth. Her voice deserved way more than that.

So now here he was, profusely sweating to a level that rivaled Berthold as he took in a deep breath, mindlessly trying to calm himself down while he was at it.

_Come on man, you got this. You talked to tons of girls before, how is this any different?_

Internally giving himself a pat of thanks, Reiner stepped forward and immediately occupied the seat beside her.

_Far enough that you still give her personal space, but close enough for you to get a good look at her face._

Reiner took in a deep breath.

"Hey." He said.

_Did that sound too eager? Oh shit._

She immediately looked up from her phone. "Oh. Hey." She said back with a smile.

Gosh, was she gorgeous.

"So," Reiner started, making sure he said it soon enough so she wouldn't look back down on her phone.

"Are you from Tennessee?"

_Classic pick-up line. Works every time_, he thought to himself.

Instead of asking why, though, she cocked her head to the side.

"I'm actually from _this_ state but thanks for asking."

Reiner felt all his respiratory system stop working. "…Right."

Before he was able to retaliate, Krista had already looked back down at her phone and typed in what he assumed was a reply to a text.

_Damn._

"I'll see you soon, then?" Reiner asked as he got up from his seat.

At least she looked up from her phone. "Yeah. It was great talking to you."

There goes that smile again. And then there goes that light again. It cast all around her, making the blonde of her hair look like shining gold and the blue of her eyes rival the skies in brightness.

She's without a doubt an angel.

Reiner offered her a small wave before going in the direction of the gym.

Much to his luck she waved back before turning back to her phone.

The smile on his face stayed there for the rest of the day.

"Reiner, are you okay?" Berthold suddenly asked in the middle of sparring, a little exercise to pass the time before closing time. By then their clients had already left and hit the showers.

Reiner only looked at his friend with a grin. "Definitely more than okay."

Connie stopped mid-kick on the punching bag to turn to the two. "You sure? You seem awfully happy for a guy who's not tapping out of a leg lock."

With a sigh the taller of the two on the mat released Reiner from his hold.

"You're awfully distracted today." Connie said as the two stood up, immediately turning back to the bag with a kick.

Reiner only shrugged. "Call it love."

"Really now?" the buzz-cut asked, not even looking away from his exercise as sarcasm laced his tone.

Reiner looked almost offended. "Hey, don't act as if this never happened to you before. In fact," he slung an arm around his best friend with a toothy grin. "Bertl was even worse back when he and Annie weren't even dating yet."

Despite the amusement of seeing his best friend so flustered, for a second there Reiner could've sworn Connie kicked the bag so hard he made the chains screech against the bar it was hanging from at the mention of Berthold and Annie.

Reiner knew that was the sign of the buzz-cut lashing out without thinking, which was pretty rare for him considering his martial art.

He didn't bother bringing it up, though.

Something told him that if he did, it won't be just the bag that Connie would lash out on.

That and it won't just be Connie who'd be lashing out on him.

* * *

"Good work today, Krista!" Sasha said as her student began removing her gear.

The smaller girl only smiled. "Well, it helps to have a good teacher." She said as she set her bow and armguard on the collapsible table (that Sasha had to install there by herself, thank you very much).

Krista rubbed the redness on her arm with a grumble. "Will these go away?"

Sasha shook her head. "You might as well get used to it. Besides," she removed her own armguard and set it on the table along with her bow. "The best hobbies leave a mark." She said as she lifted her arm, showing the marks of laceration left behind by her armguard, most definitely a product of years practicing archery. Sasha lowered her arm with a smile.

"I'm amusing your knuckles and fingers have calluses already?"

Krista nodded. "A little, but Mother countered them with copious amounts of lotion. She can be really doting sometimes."

The instructor nodded back before smirking. "Ahh. And of course soft hands would be easier for Armin to hold, am I right?"

Sasha had to stifle a laugh as her student flushed. "H-how did you know about that?!" her voice even went up an octave or two.

Wasn't she just adorable?

"Jean may have told me a few things." Sasha supplied. Her mind flashed back the memories she made that Saturday, from the conversation she had with Jean over breakfast and the video game and movie marathon they had afterwards up until the weekly briefing they had later that night when Berthold…

Sasha shook her head before her memories delved any deeper.

"Sasha?"

The brunette turned back to Krista, instantly pulling the corners of her mouth up to a smile. "Heh. Sorry. Just spacing out."

Krista seemed to buy as much and nodded. "Ah. So anyways," she said as she stretched some kinks in her back before straightening up again. "I might as well leave for lunch. See you tomorrow, Sasha!"

"I'll see you tomorrow, Krista." Sasha said as the smaller girl turned to leave.

She watched as her student leave. As soon as her figure disappeared through the main building's back entrance, Sasha turned to the tree beside her.

The girl circled it for few moments until she reached a particularly low-hanging branch. Sasha took a look around to make sure no one else was nearby.

The field was completely empty.

Without another thought, Sasha jumped and grasped the branch with both hands before pulling herself up until she was seated on it.

Slowly, Sasha got herself to a standing position and reached for one of the higher branches and hoisted herself to sit on it.

(She had to thank her years of practicing archery for this. Otherwise she wouldn't have had the upper body strength to even do it.)

Sasha had discovered this spot not too long ago last season when she had an absurd amount of free time on her hands. She was just idly roamed around her area when she had an hour of free time before her next session, found the branch with her reach and started to climb. She always did things like that, even as a kid.

The branch was low enough for her to grasp yet high enough for her to be obstructed from view, even from anyone who would be looking up, with the bark thick enough to support her body weight and maybe even more.

She hadn't dared tell anyone about that place. Not even Connie knew about it. Maybe she honestly just forgot or it had just slipped her mind, but whichever the case, back then she thought this place would be her new sanctuary. She knew that Eren had his own space in the dorm basement, creepily enough, and that Armin tended to spend his free time reading in the garden at the back of the main building, so why not have her own space?

Never would she have thought that her sanctuary would end up being her own hiding place.

Sasha took her phone (thankfully it hadn't fallen out of her pocket) and turned it on.

**_12:34_**

By that time everyone should still be eating lunch, if not already done.

Maybe if she stayed a little longer everyone would just think that she ate in her free period?

Sasha let out a guilty sigh as she pocketed her phone and leaned her back against the trunk behind her.

She knew it was wrong to skip out on staff meals and gatherings but what else was she supposed to do?

The girl mindlessly began picking at the bark under her fingertips, only to rip out a shard instead. .

_It's great to see you, Sasha._

What was the point of her showing up to lunch when she couldn't even bring it in herself to eat anyways?

Sasha carelessly threw the bark away and slammed the back of her head against the tree with a heavy sigh.

_It's only for today. I'll join the others for lunch tomorrow_, she kept telling herself as the minutes ticked on.

Sasha slammed her head against the tree once more, if only out of defeat.

_Goddamit, Berthold._

* * *

"You know I never actually found out what happened to the instructor before me." Jean started as he took a seat in between Connie and Armin on the couch with Mikasa on the blonde's other side.

It was a Thursday, and somehow Jean found himself settling himself beside Mikasa and Connie more often since the last weekly briefing. It was almost like they turned into a team of sorts.

Not that they could even be considered as a team in terms of functionality, anyways.

Despite their discreet efforts, Sasha still hadn't gotten back to her usual self, often caught staring blankly into space and barely eating her meals (if she was eating at all at least). A few others had began to take notice but thankfully no one had ever really brought it up and hell, she was even frequently missing for morning free periods nowadays, and Jean had really wanted to look for her then just to make sure but…

Mikasa only brought back up the topic of giving her some space, which lead Connie to nod in agreement as well, which lead Jean to not even bothering nowadays.

_This girl. Honestly._

Jean turned to the nurse with a quirked brow. "Eren not here again?" He asked as he looked around. A few others were still at the table while the rest of the staff was already done eating. Where was he?

The raven shook her head. "He said he had to work overtime for a bit."

The equestrian coach only nodded. "Alright. But still though," he turned to everyone else in the common room. "What happened to the guy before me? Did he get injured or something?"

A few others only coughed uncomfortably. Connie practically flinched beside him.

Noticing everyone's uneasiness, Armin answered for them.

"Last season Hanji brought her pet centipedes with her. Eren played around with them a lot for some weird reason, not that I even wanted to know why, but then they somehow ended up in Mike's saddle the last day of the season." Armin shook his head as if shaking off his discomfort before turning back to Jean. "I'm pretty sure you can piece two and two together. It wasn't pretty."

All the males in the area winced and nodded in shared masculine sympathy.

Jean only stared at Armin wide-eyed, realizing how (un)fortunate he was.

_Mike or whatever his name is literally had insects bite his dick._

.

.

.

_WHAT THE FUCK WOULD EREN POSSIBLY WANT TO DO WITH ME?_

As if on cue Eren enters the common room, his lab coat splattered with blood, the whole vicinity turning silent at the sight of him.

"What the hell happened?" Connie dared to ask.

Eren only shrugged and wiped some blood off his face. "A bad day at the office." He said before heading towards his room.

"You better mop up that mess, Jaeger!" Levi called after him from the kitchen, obviously referring to the small trail of blood the doctor left in his wake.

"Peroxide's in your nightstand!" Mikasa called after him.

They heard a muffled '_Thanks!_" come out of Eren before the bedroom door shut behind him.

Jean turned to Mikasa. "Hey Mik, Can you tell me why Eren is so…so…" he fumbled for the words. Eccentric? Deranged was it?

"Fucked up?" Mikasa supplied.

Somehow that fit better. Why didn't he think of that before?

Jean nodded. "Yeah. Why the mad genius vibe? Sure back in high school he was kinda…eccentric but now he's just…" he gestured with his hands. "Fucking lunatic. The hell happened?"

"You should know he's still hell-bent on finding a vaccine that could prevent all known diseases."

Jean nodded again, remembering that Eren's mother had died of cancer back when he was still in grade school. It wasn't really a memory that he was very fond of either. Neither was the way he found out about it.

"High school was just the first step, basically." Mikasa continued. "Once we got into college he went completely all out. Now that he's a licensed doctor with a research grant, there's no stopping him."

Armin nodded. Jean only pursed his lips. "That still doesn't explain why his methods are _so…unorthodox."_ He said, gesturing to the trail of blood that still had yet to be cleaned.

Armin eyed him sheepishly. "Should I also mention the fact that Eren's dad was a Nazi scientist?"

Jean turned to him so fast a few joints in his spine popped in protest. "How the _fuck_ is that even possible?"

"He moved to America decades after the war and married late. When Eren was a kid he well…taught a few of his methods to him. You should've seen him in grade school." Armin shivered. "It was terrifying."

Jean spoke up. "You know, testing on animals is illegal. How much more _human_ subjects? Why _aren't_ you firing him?" he asked, craning his neck to the general direction Levi and Hanji who were still in the dining room.

He barely saw Hanji pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose. "Technically, most of his experiments are just pranks. It would only be legit testing if he forced various substances on us against our will." She stood up from the table and put her plate in the sink before entering the common room. "In that respect he's nothing more than just a prankster. Since nobody's been fatally injured from his actions, save Mike of course, but he retired on his own accord and not from said injury, and the fact that he's duly followed all regulations in the club, he has no grounds for being fired."

Levi suddenly appeared beside her. "That and really Kirstein, do you know any other doctor who's willing to work in a club in the middle of nowhere where no one even gets injured all that often? With you brats of all people?"

Jean was about to respond with a no but was cut short when Hanji playfully punched Levi in the shoulder. "Aw, Levi, if you didn't want to break up the squad, you could've just said so."

Before Levi was able to retaliate, Sasha suddenly emerged from the entrance, a small sheen of sweat on her forehead and bow slung over her shoulder as she entered the common room. Hanji immediately changed topic.

"Oh, Sasha!" everyone else in the common room followed suit and greeted the new arrival.

"We didn't see you! Did you eat early, kiddo?"

The brunette managed a smile and nod. Jean could've sworn he winced at the sight of it.

"I'll just be heading up to change, if that's alright."

Hanji waved her hand as if granting permission. "Of course, of course."

With a grateful nod the archery instructor made her way to the stairs, and if one were to watch her closely, they could see that she was steadily avoiding the gazes of everyone in the room.

Particularly those from the certain three seated on the couch.

Jean followed her form until it disappeared behind the door of her room and looked away with a sigh. He met Connie and Mikasa's worried glances.

There really was no need to speak to address the issue, now was there?

Armin immediately sensed their unspoken conversation and spoke up.

"Is Sasha alright?" he asked, turning to the three beside him.

Jean had to cut the guy some slack. Armin was sharper than most people. Of course he would've noticed Sasha not being herself.

Mikasa answered in placed for the three of them and nodded. "Yeah, she's fine. She's probably just tired."

Jean stifled a scoff.

_Yeah, of course she's tired._

It was odd how much this girl could affect him. Just a few minutes ago they were having playful banter.

He turned himself out of the conversation, hand tightly curling into a fist on his lap as he looked away.

_She was tired of pretending she was fine, that's what._

* * *

Krista kept her eyes on her lap with a heavy sigh.

It was Thursday, meaning that the day after tomorrow would be her last day here at the club.

_I didn't really promise Armin anything but it's still worth a try._

Gulping and garnering in a heavy breath she turned to her mother.

"Mother?"

"Yes, darling?" The older woman asked, not looking up from her phone.

"There's something I've been meaning to tell you." She said, fiddling with the bed sheet under her.

Helena put down her phone, and Krista couldn't have felt more panicked at that moment. "What is it?"

"Well…" she started before taking in another breath. "I'm actually having a lot of fun here and I thought maybe…" Krista internally cursed herself for trailing off, eyes trailing back to her lap.

_Dang it. Way to go, Krista._

"You want to extend our stay here?"

Her vision snapped back up faster than she could blink. "How did you-?"

Helena only smiled, as if the current topic was nothing short of scandalous. "I know you've been enjoying your time here with a certain _someone."_

Krista froze. "Oh, really?"

"Why of course! I'm your mother, Krista, and even if I wasn't it would still be easy to see that you and Jean have been getting along quite well lately."

_Jean. Right. Of course._

Krista managed a nod. "If it's not much trouble, is it alright?"

"Of course it's no trouble. Another two weeks then? That would leave us with…" she pauses to take a look at her phone, most likely to open the calendar. "At least another two weeks to prepare for the wedding when we get back. Is that alright?"

The girl could barely contain her excitement. "That's more than alright!"

She didn't even expect getting half a week. But two?

"Thank you so much, Mother!" she said, and her mother lovingly placed a hand atop her head.

"Anything for you, dear."

Little did Krista know that Helena wasn't even referring to Jean at all.

_That blond boy… Armin…I'll let you continue this affair but I'll also assume you already told him of your situation. It would be such a shame to break such a sweet boy's heart._

* * *

Mikasa could only wait as her roommate continued getting ready.

It was Saturday, meaning it was their day off.

It also meant that all female members of the staff will spend their time dress shopping for the upcoming wedding.

The raven turned to Sasha. The brunette's gaze was elsewhere, hands almost frozen in the middle of her hair as she ran a brush through it.

She's spacing out again.

"Sasha?" Mikasa softly called out.

The said girl only blinked a few times before looking back at her roommate. "Oh, sorry, were you saying something?" she asked as she finally let the brush run past the ends of her hair.

Mikasa only shook her head as Sasha began to brush her hair a few more times before setting down the comb and tying up her usual ponytail.

"You just seemed a little…distracted." the nurse said in the most delicate way she can, getting off her bed to get to the door.

"O-oh?" Sasha asked, grabbing her bag and heading for the door as well.

"Kinda." Mikasa replied, opening the door and letting the brunette through before stepping out and closing and locking it behind her.

For the entire time it took for them to meet up with the rest of their female coworkers to say goodbye to the others and head over to the bus stop, Sasha remained silent.

And when it seemed that she spaced out along the way, Mikasa decided to pretend she didn't notice and not call her out on it.

This didn't stop her from worrying, though.

She gave Sasha one last once-over.

She was blankly staring into space again.

Mikasa sighed as she turned to look out the window.

_What am I going to do with you?_

* * *

Eren only sighed as he watched Reiner keep his gaze up at the ceiling above him and folded his hands over his stomach as he prattled on.

"…and I just dunno, Doc! I can't stop thinking about her!"

It was Saturday afternoon, and while the girls of the staff were out dress shopping for the upcoming wedding (Annie included, much to his surprise), the Krav Maga instructor had taken it upon himself to visit the doctor at his office for some much needed…therapy.

(Any girl would've just called it girl talk, which was why he did it now while they were all out and preoccupied.)

"Can you tell me more about it? From the beginning?" Eren said in a voice he hoped didn't sound too monotonous.

Reiner nodded almost frantically. "Well it all started last week when I was in the main lobby and I dunno, ever since every time I see her it's like she's glowing. I think it's a sign, Doc! Maybe she _is_ an angel in disguise!"

Eren felt himself sigh again as he raised his pencil back to his notepad, his sketch in near completion as he continued to add the minor details.

Somewhere as he was correcting a small portion of disproportionate anatomy Eren heard Reiner ask.

"Doc, are you even listening?"

"No." the doctor says bluntly without looking up from his work. The instructor sits up on the bed with furrowed brows.

"Then why are you taking down notes?"

Eren shook his head. "Not taking notes. I was drawing you like one of my French girls."

He flips the notepad with a flick of his wrist to display a sketch of a nude Reiner sprawled out and posing seductively on a couch.

What the actual _fuck._

As irked as the instructor was at how Eren didn't even bother to listen to him, Reiner would never admit out loud that the sketch was actually pretty good. Not to mention anatomically accurate. Even all the way down _there._

_How does he even know…?_

Reiner shook his head free of the thought.

"Thought you were a doctor, Eren. Why aren't you helping me out here?"

Eren sighed as he set his pad on his lap. "I'm a doctor, yes, but not the kind you go to for therapy."

"Eren, we're literally in the middle of nowhere yet the club doesn't have any sort of contingency for psychological health? What if one of us has actually gone insane and we didn't know?"

The doctor only smiles and shrugs as he mentally plans out his scheme to transfer his animal test subjects from under the dorm's basement to Safe House G.

"You're totally hopeless, Reiner. Has it ever occurred to you that her '_ethereal glow_'-" Eren air-quoted. "-could've just been sunlight?"

"There's always hope! If there's love there's a will and if there's a will there's always a way! And I'll love her through all the ups and downs of my life!"

"More like with all the ups and downs of your dick." Eren half-grumbled, half-sighed at how Reiner deliberately ignored his suggestion. His patient then began prattling on some sort of life-changing and awe-inspiring monologue about hope and love.

One that Eren deliberately ignored.

With a heavy sigh the doctor only picked up his pencil and resumed his sketching.

* * *

"You know, it would probably best if we had conversations like this when Mikasa's around." Jean said as he leaned his weight on the wall behind him.

Connie had led him to the gym which was surprisingly empty, considering the weekend. The buzz-cut only narrowed his eyes as he turned to him.

"Tell me, when was the last time we ever had any free time alone in this place? Without everyone looking for everyone?"

"Alright, touché" the instructor took look around before turning back to his companion. "Mind telling me why _here_ of all places, then?"

Connie deliberately ignored the question as he entered the locker room. He soon emerged fully changed in what Jean presumed to be his work-out clothes, with ankle weights strapped to his legs.

"I need to blow off some steam." The buzz-cut lately responded as he approached a nearby punching bag, not too far from where Jean stood and hanging just a few away feet from the wall in horizontal distance.

Jean watched as the other instructor rotated the bag on its chains until it revealed a side covered in masking tape X's, the leather a little stretched and worn out under the tape from use.

Connie did a few stretches before approaching a stance. "Don't think I won't be listening, just keep talking. I just need to blow off some steam." He threw a series of low kicks near the bottom of the bag, a few muted sounds escaping it as he did.

"Has Mikasa told you anything?" he asked.

_Fump fump_

Jean nodded. "A little bit. Mostly that she's been spacing out quite a bit. She hasn't pointed it out to her, though."

Connie nodded then aimed higher on the bag. "I see."

_Fump fump fump_

"She wasn't at lunch a couple days ago but she said she ate early." Jean continued quietly. Connie aimed up to his chest level this time.

In that moment, Jean finally acknowledged the fact that Connie was a master at his martial art.

_Fump fump fump_

That and the fact that he may have actually underestimated his abilities in the process.

"Do you believe her?" Connie asked again.

The equestrian instructor shook his head. "No." Jean let out a sigh and rubbed the back of his neck.

"I know I should've told you this sooner but…on the night that Berthold and Annie arrived…"

Connie didn't bother setting his aim higher and instead increased the speed of his kicks.

_Fump fump fump fump_

"I found her plate completely full while clearing the table."

Fumpfumpfumpfump

"She didn't touch her food at all."

_Fumpfumpfumpfumpfump**CREEEEEAK**_

The chains screeched in protest against the strikes and eventually the bag was sent swinging a few feet in the opposite direction.

Connie only hunched over with his hands on his knees and tried to regain his breathing. Only heavy breaths seemed to escape his mouth.

Jean got his weight off the wall and warily approached his friend.

"Con?"

The shorter man only let out another string of pants before hastily running a hand across his shaven scalp, now drenched in sweat.

And then suddenly using that same hand to hit the wall beside him.

_"Dammit!"_ he grunted after more heavy breaths, collapsing on the floor. He shifted to lean his back against the wall, one knee bent up while the other lay limply on the floor. Connie raised an arm to rest its elbow on the bent knee and brought its hand to cover his forehead and eyes, almost as if in shame.

Silence lapsed between the two for an untold amount of time. Jean used this to slump into a seat beside him with a heavy sigh and kept his eyes on the cement tiles of the gym.

"Sasha not eating is like one of the seven signs of the apocalypse." Connie suddenly said. "Kinda like the four horsemen…" he trailed off, then suddenly removing his hand off his face and turning to Jean with wide eyes. "Jean holy shit you…and _horsemen…"_

Connie looked up the ceiling as if in near panic. He watched intently it for a few moments before turning back to his friend in all seriousness.

No, the world's not ending just yet. No fire falling from the sky or hails of burning ice or whatever." He said before grinning.

And then he let out a dry, humorless laugh.

Jean only watched him with a furrowed brow in a mix of slight disappointment and mild sympathy.

"Sorry man. Just trying to lighten the mood a bit." He laughed again, this time just a long drawn out breath from his nose and kept his gaze on the floor as well. "Sorry you had to watch me hulk out by the way."

Jean nodded. "No problem."

Connie let out another heavy sigh, this time through his mouth.

"I'd kick you for not telling me earlier but...I'm not one to talk. The entire time that night, I expected her to at least go to me so she could get away from everything but she didn't." Jean could only watch as Connie visibly deflated. "I shouldn't have waited, dammit. I should've gone to her first or tried talking to her or at least done something…" He ran a hand over his scalp again. "But no, I just had to blow it."

He kept it at the top of his head as he slammed the back of his skull against the concrete behind him.

"She's my best friend yet I haven't done anything for her, man." He went back to covering his eyes and forehead with a palm with another exhale. "It sucks."

Jean only nodded again. "Yeah."

His mind suddenly flashed back to just a few days ago when he approached her disheveled form…

Only to run the opposite the direction like a little bitch.

Jean unconsciously clenched his fist beside him and slammed the back of his head to the wall as well, joining Connie in this little act of shared misery.

"I get the feeling."

* * *

Armin sat back with a sigh, glad that he had finished all the reports on schedule. Even if it was Saturday it didn't mean that he was exempted from work either.

And with Hanji out of grounds, his work had to be doubled for the day. Just great.

He hears a knock, and Armin only called out. "You can come in!"

The door opens.

And there Krista was; her hair up in a messy bun since she probably forwent washing it that day, forehead a little shiny from the oil that had accumulated on her face since that morning and her frame swallowed up in a pair of jeans a ratty old sweater he infers she had since she was in high school.

And she looked nothing short of beautiful.

Armin couldn't suppress his smile. "Oh, Krista. What brings you here?"

She shut the door behind her with a smile of her own. "I'm actually here for business. Do you know where Miss Hanji is?" she asks as she takes sits herself down on the chairs in front of his desk.

The file room was more of an office than anything else, an average-sized room with shelves upon shelves filled with records and folders that would've been a nightmare to search for had he and Jean not cleaned up last Friday.

Armin flips the pages of his clipboard to meet the Lenz record. "She's out dress shopping. One of our female coworkers is getting married. I'm covering for her at the moment."

Krista only nodded. "Oh, I see. Then that makes my job a little easier."

"And what would that be?" he asked, keeping gaze on the file.

_Two days left._

"Mother sent me here with regards on our stay here at the hotel."

How did time fly by so fast, I wonder.

"She wanted me to make sure that our extension was in order."

Armin looked back up so fast he could've sworn he heard his neck pop. "Wait, what?"

Krista only gave him a smile. "Mother decided to extend our stay for another two weeks."

And in that moment, Armin really felt like kissing her.

.

.

.

And so he does.

.

.

.

And remembers too late that there was a wide table between them.

Armin only let out a groan as both his gut came into impact with the desk's edge. Really hard.

"Armin?!" Krista cried, immediately standing up to be at his side and crouching to meet his level as she places her hand on his shoulder.

"What did you just try to do?"

"Ifasgointobisyou" he answered, voice muffled against the wood of his tabletop.

She only looked genuinely confused. "What?"

Armin lifted his flushed face off the desk. "I was going to kiss you, okay?" he said, facing her. "But I forgot there was a table in the way."

Krista visibly froze. "Oh."

They stayed in awkward silence a moment after that.

Krista felt herself blush, thoughts in complete disarray from shock and going everywhere and nowhere all at once so fast she can't even keep track of a single train of thought.

Meanwhile Armin's only stayed in one place.

Her.

The way her lips trembled as she stared at him in embarrassed shock, the way her eyes were a muted shade of blue under the afternoon light of the nearby window and the warmth that radiated from her hand where it placed itself on his shoulder.

_Her._

Armin suddenly felt himself move his face towards hers, and before he knew it she was leaning in as well.

* * *

Jean and Connie probably stayed against the wall for what felt like hours in complete silence.

That was at least, until Connie broke it by suddenly finding the will to slowly stand up.

Jean looked up at him questioningly, as if expecting him to say something.

"Hm?"

"Do me a favor, Jean?" he asked as he outstretched a hand toward him.

The other boy took and the buzz-cut hoist him up to his feet. "Yeah sure, anything."

Connie kept their hands linked even when the other instructor got to his feet and stared him right in the eye.

The seriousness in his gaze almost made Jean nervous.

"I know I already asked you of this before, but please." Jean felt him tighten his grip for just a split second, almost like a reassuring squeeze. "Promise me that you'll help Sasha through whatever's going on with her. I'll be doing my part as well, but there are things only _you_ can do to her." He squeezes again without loosening his grip, and Jean had to swallow a lump in his throat.

"I know you hate seeing her like that as well. So please. _Please."_

Suddenly feeling resolve burning in his chest like an open flame, Jean returned the grip and nodded in earnest.

"I will. I swear."

Despite the sentimentality in the action, and how they pulled apart and when their separate ways afterwards, Jean couldn't help but wonder.

Why him?

Of all people, why him?

And what the hell could he possibly do that her two best friends in the entire staff couldn't?

* * *

Sasha only fiddled with the hem of the pillow on her lap as she waited for Petra to emerge out of the dressing room, the rest of the female staff members wandering around and looking through racks upon racks of dresses.

All of them had agreed before they left that they would make sure to secure Petra's dress first before picking out their own, and that anyone who already had dresses back home would be the last to get theirs. That didn't stop them from excitedly looking through what the shop had to offer, though.

They were at a boutique in the city, just a small one a couple miles away from the train station. Three hours was way too long to travel for dresses but apparently nothing stopped the girls otherwise.

Lucky enough for Sasha, though, most of them had fallen asleep half way into the train ride, leaving her plenty of time to herself as she blasted away on her earphones.

"You alright there, Sasha?" Hanji's voice inquired when she plopped down beside her on the couch.

Sasha instinctively pulled up the corners of mouth. "Yeah. Just tired from the train ride, I guess. That and I'm not completely used to dress shopping and all that girly stuff." She lied easily.

_I've been doing a lot of that lately_, she thought.

Hanji patted her hand onto Sasha's shoulder with a smile. "I get what you mean. Don't be so nervous kiddo, I'm pretty sure you'll look lovely." She dropped her hand onto her lap. "You might catch a certain someone's eye while you're at it." she said with a wink.

"I highly doubt it." Sasha said slowly with a shake of her head.

_How do I even do that when he's already married?_

Suddenly Mina plopped down on her other side. "You have no idea what you're talking about, I'm pretty sure Jean will definitely notice." She said with a smirk.

"Huh?"

Mina dropped the smirk and soon replaced with a look of genuine disbelief. "You seriously haven't noticed?"

"Noticed what?"

Hanji suddenly spoke up. "Sasha, I'm speaking for everyone in the club when I say that I noticed Jean has been staring at you lately. A lot, actually."

Mina nodded. "Yeah. It's kinda sweet to be honest, him always watching over you like that. And how he's always looking for you during free period."

"Or kinda creepy and stalker-ish of him…" Sasha muttered under her breath.

Has he, really?

Was he that worried?

Did he really find her so weak that he had to keep constant surveillance of her whenever he could?

"Alright everyone, I think I'm ready!"

Petra's voice had cut off whatever train of thought had went through Sasha's mind. The brunette only snapped her gaze to the curtains in front of her as the other girls excitedly gathered around.

"What do you think?" the copper-haired woman asked as soon as the drapes opened. She gave a little twirl to show everyone the whole look.

Even Sasha couldn't resist smiling upon seeing her.

The dress wasn't in the same ivory tone as the ones on the mannequins by the window display and was a pure white. The neckline wasn't anything too scandalous and was a straight cut across her chest, its corset bodice appliquéd with lace ending right at her waist where a wide blue sash that ended in a bow in her lower back rested by her hips. From there the fabric fell in soft waves all the way down a little past her knees in the perfect tea length.

To put it short, the dress was beautiful.

And it only made Petra look even more so.

All the girls erupted into applause, not being able to find words to describe just how stunning Petra looked, even if it was just a dress fitting.

Petra only blushed. "I'm guessing this is the one?"

Hanji only tackled her into a hug. "Pet, we wouldn't have applauded otherwise. I have a little issue about the skirt, though." The brunette said as she surveyed the bottom half of the dress.

Petra looked confused. "Huh? What's wrong with the skirt?"

"It looks a bit too full. Knowing Levi he'd probably want to engage in after wedding sex so we really wouldn't want to give him a hard time to look for your –"

Hanji was cut off short when Hannah and Mina threw the couch pillows at her head. Petra was ever the wiser as she let the manager fall to the floor.

Sasha let out a chuckle, the first real one in a long time. She turned to look at the rest of her co-workers. They all had a blush on their face. Even Mikasa and Annie were a distinct shade of pink, though Annie only turned away and Mikasa buried the bottom half of her face in her ever present scarf.

"Anyways," Hanji started as soon as she regained balance. "Now that the bride is done here, you girls can go ahead and look for your own dress."

The rest of the afternoon had been a blur to Sasha from there. She remembered a collective excited squeal as the girls perused the racks and also a few girls going into the dressing rooms to try on their finds, but aside from that she couldn't really recall what else happened.

She does however, remember Mikasa placing a hand over her shoulder as she stared into empty space.

"Sasha?"

The said girl let out a string of stammers before properly responding. "Yeah?"

_Damn. I should really stop spacing out like that._

Luckily for her Mikasa didn't really seem to notice and only smiled. "Have you picked out a dress a yet? Or do you already have one at home?"

Realizing that most of the girls had already begun to ring up their purchases, and the fact that she didn't have anything formal that fit the wedding's motif of dark blue and white, Sasha only shook her head before standing up.

"I better start dress hunting then." Sasha said, pulling up the corners of her mouth in a smile.

She wandered off into the deeper crevices of the store, only stopping when she reached a particular rack of ocean colored dresses and picking the first one her size that didn't reveal too much skin.

With a sigh she navigated past her coworkers back to the dressing room, immediately entering the first empty stall she saw and shutting the curtain closed behind her as she hung the dress by the hooks on the wall.

Sasha snuck a glance at her reflection as soon as her jeans and shirt were on the chair beside her.

Rarely ever did she actually fully observe herself in the mirror, and despite how small it was, she still saw it.

The small edge of protruding rib against her skin that she knew wasn't there the last time she checked.

Sasha only stared for a short moment before shaking her head and grabbing the dress off the hanger, opening the zipper and slipping it over her head with ease.

Even with the zipper fully closed behind her, she felt it.

The dress was a little looser on her torso than she expected.

As if on cue, she heard Mina's voice from behind the curtain. "You done there, Sash?"

The girl felt herself nod. "Yeah. You can open the curtain if you want."

Mina didn't even wait and excitedly opened the curtain. She smiled widely.

"I think it really suits you, Sasha."

"You think so?" the brunette asked, smoothing down the skirt as she finally took a better look at her overall look in the mirror.

The dark blue dress's neckline wasn't as revealing as Petra's, and instead was a v-neck that stopped just a little bit below her collarbones, its straps wide enough to cover the expanse of her shoulders. The dress cinched at her waist and from there it flowed down in soft layers ending above her knees.

It wasn't all too bad, she supposed. At least she didn't look too strange in it, even with her hair in its usual, somewhat messy ponytail and dusty flats.

Hannah (had she always been there?) nodded. "Yeah, you look beautiful, Sasha!" she said, the girls around her nodding excitedly.

"It's pretty simple but that's always been your style anyways."

Sasha pulled her mouth up into another smile. "I'm happy to hear that. I guess I'll just change out of it and have it reserved?"

The girls before her nodded, and Sasha tried her best to keep the smile on her face as she closed the curtain.

The smile is gone as soon as her coworkers were out of sight.

A voice in the back of her mind nagged at her in a tone similar to her father's, saying that lying was a bad habit she had to stop doing. It ate away at her conscience for the first few days until she realized one inevitable truth.

Lying wasn't a habit. It was a skill.

Some were just born talented at lying. Others, like her, had to learn how to be. It had to be practiced.

So far she had already improved, up until the point that it had already become second nature to her nowadays.

"You alright there, Sasha?"

The brunette managed a nod before stepping out of the dressing room, fully changed and faked smile already in place.

"Yeah."

Yep.

She definitely has improved.

* * *

**A/N: I'M ALIVE I SWEAR I'M SORRY. YOU ALL KNOW THE LIFE OF A STUDENT, RIGHT?**

***clears throat* Anyways.**

**In case you haven't noticed, this chapter hasn't been beta read so please excuse any typos and grammar errors in the chapter. I really hope I didn't disappoint any of you with this. Nine months is too long to wait for a chapter orz. Whichever the case, I can't give an exact date as to when I'll post the next chapter, but I'll have you all know that it's around 65-75% in completion. Sneak peak for Chapter 6 will be posted on my tumblr at a later date. Follow me at .com if you have the time *end self promo here***

**And just to inform all of you, the original idea I had for this chapter grew too long so I had to divide it into two. And then I had to divide the first part into two parts as well. So you can notice some things I placed in the preview last chapter and the photoset I posted on tumblr not actually being in this chapter at all. Expect it to be in the next two or so. **

**TO ALL OF YOU WHO REVIEWED, FOLLOWED, FAVORITED AND PATIENTLY WAITED FOR THIS STORY (AND INTEND TO WAIT FOR THE NEXT CHAPTER AS WELL), THANK YOU AND ILYSM**

**till next time, my lovelies (^o^)V**

**edgeofmyemotions**


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